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 116 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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. kid — to tease
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. file — a tool
  6. field — a subject
  7. scale — size or range
  8. sharp — clever
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. file — a line of people
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fork — in a road
  13. bore — to drill
  14. field — farmland
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. scale — in music
  22. file — a document
  23. field — for sport
  24. kid — child

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