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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. rash — hasty
  3. mark — a grade
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mark — a trace
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. field — a subject
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. clip — to cut
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. rash — a series
  18. field — for sport
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. field — farmland
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. chair — a leader
  24. mark — to pay attention

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