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: bear · race · field · pit · lean · wake · season · hand

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. season — in sport
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. season — of the year
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. field — for sport
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hand — in cards
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. race — a contest
  12. lean — thin
  13. pit — in a race
  14. race — humankind
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. race — the arms race
  19. field — farmland
  20. lean — to bend
  21. wake — a trail
  22. field — a subject
  23. hand — help
  24. bear — the animal

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