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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. current — happening now
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. spring — a coil
  5. ball — a dance
  6. current — of water
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. spring — the season
  10. field — a subject
  11. ball — a great time
  12. spring — of water
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. field — for sport
  15. shower — to wash
  16. current — electric
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. field — farmland
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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