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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. field — a subject
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. craft — boats
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. field — farmland
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. season — in sport
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. march — the month
  17. season — of the year
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. field — for sport
  21. craft — a skill
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. march — music
  24. date — the fruit

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