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 116 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. field — for sport
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. land — to come down
  6. field — farmland
  7. land — a country
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stand — to bear
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rock — music
  19. chip — for betting
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chip — to eat
  24. field — a subject

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