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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. fine — all right
  4. fine — high quality
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. degree — an amount
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. tube — the underground
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. net — in sport
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. tube — a container
  15. foot — a measure
  16. net — for catching
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. net — after costs
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. field — for sport
  22. mine — for digging
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. plane — a tool

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