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 116 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  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. land — a country
  2. ground — the earth
  3. fall — the season
  4. season — in sport
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — not warm
  7. land — ground
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fork — in a road
  11. land — to come down
  12. saw — the tool
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ground — a position
  18. saw — the tool
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. season — of the year
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fall — to drop
  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