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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spell — magic
  3. key — the most important part
  4. spell — letters
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. mate — a partner
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. wound — an injury
  11. key — for a lock
  12. mate — to breed
  13. pass — a permit
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. spell — a short time
  16. field — farmland
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. field — a subject
  19. spring — of water
  20. key — in music
  21. mate — a friend
  22. field — for sport
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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