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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. field — farmland
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. lean — thin
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. cold — an illness
  9. field — a subject
  10. fall — the season
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. field — for sport
  13. saw — the tool
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. fall — to drop
  16. toast — bread
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. saw — the tool
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. cold — not warm
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. fall — to drop

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