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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bat — the animal
  3. content — happy
  4. content — the amount
  5. mate — to breed
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. field — farmland
  8. court — of law
  9. field — a subject
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. court — for sport
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mate — a friend
  14. wake — a trail
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. court — of a king
  18. foot — a measure
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. mate — a partner
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. field — for sport

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