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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. field — for sport
  3. squash — to crush
  4. face — to point toward
  5. march — the month
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. march — the month
  8. current — electric
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. field — farmland
  12. face — part of the head
  13. current — of water
  14. cold — not warm
  15. march — music
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. field — a subject
  18. face — to confront
  19. kick — in football
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — the animal
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. cold — an illness

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