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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. hand — help
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. field — farmland
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. track — a song
  9. pitch — completely
  10. net — after costs
  11. hand — in cards
  12. track — to keep track
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cell — in biology
  18. field — a subject
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fine — high quality
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fine — all right
  24. track — a path

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