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 124 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. scale — in music
  6. cold — not warm
  7. scale — size or range
  8. field — for sport
  9. charge — a price
  10. plane — a tool
  11. field — farmland
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. prune — to trim
  17. charge — in control
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. charge — electricity
  20. row — a line
  21. cold — an illness
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. perch — the fish
  24. row — to paddle

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