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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. fine — high quality
  3. field — for sport
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. last — finally
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. clip — a video
  8. bat — the animal
  9. last — final
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pit — in a race
  13. last — to go on
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. field — farmland
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. foot — a measure
  20. clip — to cut
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. field — a subject
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bat — in an idiom

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