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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. net — in sport
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rest — what's left
  5. row — to paddle
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. wound — an injury
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. rest — what's left
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. field — farmland
  13. row — a line
  14. wound — an injury
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. field — a subject
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. net — for catching
  19. ball — a dance
  20. net — after costs
  21. field — for sport
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. rest — a break
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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