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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. fall — the season
  3. pop — to visit
  4. march — music
  5. field — a subject
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. rash — hasty
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. swing — music
  10. march — the month
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pop — soda
  16. mine — for digging
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bark — to shout
  20. pop — music
  21. march — the month
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rash — a series
  24. swing — to play on

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