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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. tube — the underground
  3. field — for sport
  4. degree — an amount
  5. tube — a container
  6. degree — from a university
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. field — farmland
  9. degree — temperature
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. sharp — clever
  14. field — a subject
  15. mine — for digging
  16. rest — a break
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. band — a ring

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