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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. key — the most important part
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. field — for sport
  5. key — for a lock
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bulb — for light
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bulb — for light
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. capital — money
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. key — in music
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. capital — a city
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. field — farmland
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. field — a subject
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. trunk — of a tree

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