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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. chest — of your body
  4. capital — money
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. field — farmland
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. row — to paddle
  13. field — a subject
  14. chest — of your body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. chest — a box
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. capital — a city
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. row — a line
  22. net — after costs
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. field — for sport

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