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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — army training
  6. field — farmland
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. stock — shares
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. stock — goods
  13. drill — a practice
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. toast — bread
  16. land — a country
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. saw — the tool
  20. land — ground
  21. rash — a series
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. saw — the tool

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