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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. field — for sport
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. capital — a city
  5. rest — what's left
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. capital — money
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. field — a subject
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. sharp — clever
  19. rest — a break
  20. field — farmland
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. patient — a sick person

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