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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. tear — to rip
  3. field — for sport
  4. mine — for digging
  5. swing — music
  6. swing — to play on
  7. field — a subject
  8. ground — a position
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. suit — clothes
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cap — a lid
  16. suit — in cards
  17. swing — in golf
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. ground — the earth
  20. suit — to fit
  21. tear — from crying
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cap — a hat

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