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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. track — a path
  5. field — for sport
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. field — a subject
  8. track — to keep track
  9. tear — from crying
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. field — farmland
  12. cap — a hat
  13. squash — to crush
  14. tear — from crying
  15. season — in sport
  16. squash — the sport
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. rash — hasty
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rash — a series
  23. season — of the year
  24. track — a song

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