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: drill · toast · spell · hide · chest · ground · safe · field

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. field — a subject
  3. chest — of your body
  4. toast — bread
  5. spell — letters
  6. ground — crushed
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. drill — army training
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chest — of your body
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. spell — a short time
  13. chest — a box
  14. ground — a position
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. field — farmland
  17. spell — magic
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — the tool
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. field — for sport
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. ground — the earth

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