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: sharp · tear · file · spring · fan · root · straw · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. root — of a word
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. root — of a plant
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. file — a line of people
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. field — a subject
  14. sharp — clever
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — of water
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. tear — from crying
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a tool
  21. root — the cause
  22. field — farmland
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. spring — a coil

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