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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. row — a line
  3. club — for golf
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bank — for money
  6. club — for dancing
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. field — farmland
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — of a river
  14. content — the amount
  15. capital — money
  16. content — happy
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. field — a subject
  19. chair — a leader
  20. club — a group
  21. capital — a city
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a professorship

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