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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. root — of a plant
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. land — to come down
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — a tool
  10. root — the cause
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. root — of a word
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cell — in biology
  17. land — a country
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — a phone
  22. land — ground
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. field — for sport

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