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: pound · stick · snap · wax · bat · face · swing · field

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. field — a subject
  4. swing — to play on
  5. face — to point toward
  6. snap — to click
  7. face — to confront
  8. wax — to grow
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. swing — in golf
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. field — farmland
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. swing — music
  19. face — part of the head
  20. field — for sport
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pound — a weight
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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