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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. face — to confront
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. field — for sport
  7. face — to point toward
  8. field — a subject
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. clip — a video
  11. wound — an injury
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wound — an injury
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. clip — for paper
  22. face — part of the head
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. lie — an untruth

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