ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bass — the fish
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rash — hasty
  6. field — farmland
  7. drill — a practice
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bass — low music
  15. field — a subject
  16. chest — a box
  17. drill — army training
  18. calf — a young animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com