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: ground · spell · kick · field · degree · charge · content · bark

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. field — a subject
  3. kick — in football
  4. spell — magic
  5. degree — temperature
  6. charge — in control
  7. ground — a position
  8. degree — from a university
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. spell — letters
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. charge — a price
  13. content — the amount
  14. field — farmland
  15. content — happy
  16. ground — crushed
  17. degree — an amount
  18. field — for sport
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — to shout
  22. ground — the earth
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. charge — electricity

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