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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. last — final
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — for sport
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. field — farmland
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. last — finally
  10. lean — thin
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. rule — government
  13. lean — to bend
  14. last — to go on
  15. capital — money
  16. file — a line of people
  17. rule — a law
  18. capital — a city
  19. field — a subject
  20. file — a document
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. file — a tool
  24. lean — to rest against

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