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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — to shout
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. net — after costs
  12. object — to protest
  13. scale — in music
  14. net — for catching
  15. field — for sport
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. object — an aim
  18. net — in sport
  19. object — a thing
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. mine — for digging
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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