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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. ground — a position
  8. court — of a king
  9. present — the time now
  10. field — a subject
  11. court — for sport
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bore — to tire
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. court — of law
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. present — a gift
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bore — to drill
  23. ground — crushed
  24. present — there

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