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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. spell — letters
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. bulb — for light
  7. field — for sport
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. field — farmland
  11. spell — magic
  12. pitch — completely
  13. field — a subject
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. stock — goods

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