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: pop · lie · stick · cap · fall · field · chair · current

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. current — of water
  3. pop — soda
  4. fall — to drop
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. fall — the season
  10. cap — of ice
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. current — electric
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cap — a hat
  16. pop — to visit
  17. field — for sport
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. field — farmland
  20. cap — a lid
  21. current — happening now
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. pop — music
  24. chair — a leader

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