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: squash · field · racket · chest · lean · cold · stick · swing

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. field — farmland
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. squash — to crush
  8. lean — thin
  9. chest — a box
  10. swing — to play on
  11. field — for sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. field — a subject
  16. swing — in golf
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. cold — an illness
  19. swing — music
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. lean — to bend
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. squash — the sport

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