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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. track — to keep track
  7. cap — a lid
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cap — of ice
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bat — the animal
  16. track — a song
  17. last — final
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. last — to go on
  21. cap — a hat
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. track — a path
  24. last — finally

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