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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. pop — to visit
  3. fork — in a road
  4. drill — the tool
  5. spring — the season
  6. mate — a friend
  7. snap — to click
  8. mate — a partner
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. field — a subject
  11. pop — soda
  12. lean — to bend
  13. pop — music
  14. spring — of water
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. field — for sport
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lean — thin
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. drill — a practice
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. drill — army training
  24. field — farmland

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