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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cell — a phone
  3. field — for sport
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. stock — shares
  7. field — a subject
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. fine — all right
  10. wake — a trail
  11. season — in sport
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. stock — goods
  15. fine — high quality
  16. mark — a trace
  17. ground — crushed
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ground — the earth
  20. season — of the year
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mark — a grade
  23. cell — in biology
  24. ground — a position

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