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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pound — a weight
  3. field — for sport
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — of ice
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — there
  8. cap — a hat
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cold — not warm
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. staff — employees
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. field — farmland
  22. present — the time now
  23. field — a subject
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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