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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. land — a country
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — part of the head
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. rule — government
  12. face — to point toward
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. dip — to sink
  16. land — ground
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rule — a law
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. land — to come down
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. wave — with your hand

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