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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. face — to point toward
  3. file — a document
  4. clip — for paper
  5. shower — rain
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. clip — a video
  8. field — farmland
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. face — part of the head
  11. file — a line of people
  12. field — for sport
  13. lean — to bend
  14. foot — a measure
  15. face — to confront
  16. field — a subject
  17. fine — all right
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. file — a tool
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. lean — thin
  23. fine — high quality
  24. clip — to cut

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