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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. land — to come down
  3. cell — in biology
  4. pass — a permit
  5. cell — a phone
  6. court — for sport
  7. bulb — for light
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. field — a subject
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. court — of a king
  15. land — ground
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — in sport
  18. court — of law
  19. land — a country
  20. field — for sport
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pass — to spend time

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