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: board · wound · court · racket · saw · date · field · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wound — an injury
  3. board — to get on
  4. field — for sport
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. board — a committee
  10. wound — an injury
  11. court — for sport
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. saw — the tool
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. field — a subject
  17. date — the fruit
  18. court — of law
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. saw — the tool
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. court — of a king
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. field — farmland

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