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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — help
  4. field — a subject
  5. march — the month
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. cell — a phone
  8. march — the month
  9. key — in music
  10. key — the most important part
  11. march — music
  12. swing — music
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. swing — in golf
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. key — for a lock
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. board — a committee
  21. snap — to click
  22. swing — to play on
  23. board — to get on
  24. cell — in biology

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