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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. suit — to fit
  5. suit — in cards
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. sharp — clever
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. pound — a weight
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bat — the animal
  15. field — for sport
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. field — farmland
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. suit — clothes
  24. pound — for dogs

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