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: wind · face · content · ground · fork · pit · swing · row

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. row — a line
  3. face — part of the head
  4. ground — crushed
  5. row — to paddle
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. swing — music
  8. swing — in golf
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wind — moving air
  11. fork — in a road
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. wind — moving air
  14. face — to point toward
  15. ground — a position
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. content — happy
  19. swing — to play on
  20. pit — in a race
  21. content — the amount
  22. ground — the earth
  23. face — to confront
  24. pit — a hole

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