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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. firm — decided
  3. cap — a lid
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. field — for sport
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. prune — to trim
  12. field — farmland
  13. firm — steady
  14. game — a match
  15. cap — of ice
  16. stock — goods
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. firm — a company
  19. cap — a hat
  20. prune — to trim
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. snap — to click
  23. stock — shares
  24. field — a subject

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