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 120 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: spring · coach · hand · field · plane · lean · stick · land

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. hand — help
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. hand — in cards
  5. spring — of water
  6. field — farmland
  7. lean — to bend
  8. spring — a coil
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. land — a country
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. spring — the season
  18. land — ground
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. plane — a tool
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. lean — thin
  23. field — for sport
  24. land — to come down

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