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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rush — hurry
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rule — a law
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. rule — government
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. snap — to click
  16. wound — an injury
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. field — a subject
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. field — farmland
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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