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: cell · toast · field · mine · stock · rock · hand · bear

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. field — farmland
  4. bear — the animal
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. field — for sport
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — goods
  10. toast — bread
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rock — music
  13. hand — in cards
  14. field — a subject
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bear — the animal
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. rock — a stone
  24. cell — a phone

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