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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. file — a line of people
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. game — wild animals
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. shower — rain
  12. file — a document
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. game — a match
  17. pass — a permit
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. bass — low music
  20. field — for sport
  21. shower — to wash
  22. file — a tool
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bowl — a dish

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