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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. field — a subject
  3. rest — a break
  4. band — a music group
  5. present — a gift
  6. drill — a practice
  7. race — the arms race
  8. band — a ring
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. race — humankind
  12. field — for sport
  13. present — the time now
  14. kid — child
  15. present — there
  16. field — farmland
  17. race — a contest
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. lie — to recline
  20. kid — to tease
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rest — what's left
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. rest — what's left

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