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: season · press · kid · rule · field · wave · shower · content

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. kid — child
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. season — of the year
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. kid — to tease
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. press — a publisher
  9. content — happy
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. rule — a law
  16. shower — rain
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. content — the amount
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. shower — to wash
  21. season — in sport
  22. field — farmland
  23. press — to push
  24. press — newspapers

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