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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. field — farmland
  3. game — a match
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lie — to recline
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. race — humankind
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. game — wild animals
  20. row — to paddle
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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