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 116 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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. current — happening now
  3. field — a subject
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — money
  6. track — a song
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. current — electric
  9. kid — child
  10. root — of a word
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. track — a path
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. spell — magic
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. field — farmland
  18. capital — a city
  19. root — the cause
  20. track — to keep track
  21. root — of a plant
  22. field — for sport
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spell — letters

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