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: racket · race · bark · cold · stem · field · bowl · season

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. season — in sport
  4. race — humankind
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. cold — not warm
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. season — of the year
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. race — a contest
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. field — farmland
  23. bark — to shout
  24. bark — of a tree

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