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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. field — a subject
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. field — for sport
  6. rule — a law
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. clip — to cut
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. clip — for paper
  12. cold — not warm
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. lean — thin
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. clip — a video
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rule — government
  21. pitch — completely
  22. field — farmland
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — to rest against

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