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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. field — for sport
  5. pit — a hole
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bat — the animal
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. last — final
  12. pit — in a race
  13. last — to go on
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. row — a line
  19. field — farmland
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. field — a subject
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. last — finally

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