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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fine — high quality
  5. field — farmland
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. bass — low music
  9. spring — of water
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. kid — child
  14. fine — all right
  15. kid — to tease
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. field — a subject
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. bass — the fish
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. cold — an illness
  24. season — in 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