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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. march — music
  3. club — for dancing
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. field — for sport
  6. lean — thin
  7. lie — to recline
  8. field — farmland
  9. swing — music
  10. march — the month
  11. bound — tied together
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bound — obliged
  14. swing — to play on
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — a group
  17. lean — to bend
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. field — a subject
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. swing — in golf
  22. march — the month
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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