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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. cold — not warm
  4. field — farmland
  5. clip — a video
  6. field — for sport
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. clip — to cut
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wake — a trail
  12. rule — government
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. field — a subject
  15. clip — for paper
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — a law
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — in a race
  24. cold — an illness

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