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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. club — a group
  3. cold — an illness
  4. club — for dancing
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wound — an injury
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wound — an injury
  9. can — to be able to
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. club — for golf
  15. can — a tin
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. can — a tin
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. dip — to sink
  23. snap — to click
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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