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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. field — for sport
  5. fall — the season
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. mark — a trace
  8. chest — of your body
  9. field — a subject
  10. club — a group
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. field — farmland
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. perch — the fish
  19. vault — a safe
  20. chest — a box
  21. cell — a phone
  22. fall — to drop
  23. mark — a grade
  24. club — for golf

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