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: ground · dip · wax · field · track · bowl · tear · wind

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. track — a path
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — a subject
  5. field — for sport
  6. tear — to rip
  7. field — farmland
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. wind — moving air
  12. track — a song
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. ground — crushed
  17. dip — to sink
  18. ground — the earth
  19. track — to keep track
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wax — for sculpting

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