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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pit — a hole
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. last — to go on
  7. field — for sport
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. field — farmland
  12. spring — the season
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. spring — a coil
  15. date — the fruit
  16. last — finally
  17. spring — of water
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. field — a subject
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. pit — in a race
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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