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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. net — for catching
  7. tear — to rip
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. chest — of your body
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. swing — to play on
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. tear — from crying
  15. field — a subject
  16. chest — a box
  17. field — for sport
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. swing — in golf
  20. branch — a division
  21. tear — from crying
  22. swing — music
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. foot — a measure

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