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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · bay · hide · cell · field · kick

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. fork — in a road
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. field — farmland
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — in football
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. fork — a garden tool

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