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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. press — a publisher
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. race — a contest
  9. field — farmland
  10. race — humankind
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. content — happy
  13. field — a subject
  14. row — to paddle
  15. dip — to sink
  16. press — to push
  17. press — newspapers
  18. field — for sport
  19. race — the arms race
  20. row — a line
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. fork — in a road

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