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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. field — a subject
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. branch — a division
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. patient — a sick person

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