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 120 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. can — a tin
  4. chest — a box
  5. content — happy
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. can — a tin
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. chest — of your body
  14. field — a subject
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. branch — a division
  17. field — farmland
  18. content — the amount
  19. field — for sport
  20. can — to be able to
  21. pitch — completely
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. net — for catching

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