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: current · land · present · field · swing · chest · trunk · coach

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. land — ground
  3. current — happening now
  4. land — a country
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. chest — of your body
  7. land — to come down
  8. present — there
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — music
  12. field — for sport
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. current — electric
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — the time now
  17. current — of water
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. chest — a box
  22. swing — to play on
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. chest — of your body

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