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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. kid — child
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cue — a signal
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. season — in sport
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. kid — to tease
  11. cue — for pool
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. row — a line
  14. field — for sport
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. field — a subject
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. season — of the year
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. field — farmland
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. season — to add flavour

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