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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. dip — to sink
  3. spell — magic
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. fine — all right
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. field — a subject
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. game — a match
  14. row — a line
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. fine — high quality
  18. spell — letters
  19. field — for sport
  20. game — wild animals
  21. row — to paddle
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. spell — a short time
  24. bowl — a football final

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