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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. field — a subject
  3. race — a contest
  4. craft — a skill
  5. race — humankind
  6. suit — in cards
  7. race — the arms race
  8. clip — to cut
  9. field — farmland
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. suit — clothes
  14. field — for sport
  15. clip — a video
  16. suit — to fit
  17. craft — boats
  18. clip — for paper
  19. chest — a box
  20. fork — in a road
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. fork — to eat with

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