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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. field — for sport
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. squash — to crush
  6. field — a subject
  7. squash — the sport
  8. can — to be able to
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. spring — of water
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. spring — the season
  17. fine — all right
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. field — farmland
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. spring — a coil
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. can — a tin

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