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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. kid — to tease
  4. march — music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. march — the month
  8. race — the arms race
  9. pit — in a race
  10. field — farmland
  11. race — a contest
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. kid — child
  14. field — for sport
  15. bass — low music
  16. rest — what's left
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. race — humankind
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. march — the month
  23. field — a subject
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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