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: straw · mate · press · field · snap · perch · race · saw

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. mate — a partner
  3. field — farmland
  4. mate — to breed
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — newspapers
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. snap — to click
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. field — a subject
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — the arms race
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. saw — the tool
  18. perch — the fish
  19. mate — a friend
  20. race — a contest
  21. field — for sport
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. press — to push
  24. straw — a straw man

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