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: bay · field · staff · clip · land · pitcher · ground · bowl

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. land — a country
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. clip — a video
  7. ground — the earth
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. ground — crushed
  11. field — a subject
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. staff — employees
  15. ground — a position
  16. staff — employees
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. land — ground
  19. clip — for paper
  20. staff — a stick
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  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