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: shower · calf · bound · rest · field · bat · track · rock

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. track — a path
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bound — obliged
  8. shower — rain
  9. field — farmland
  10. rock — a stone
  11. rest — a break
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bound — tied together
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. track — to keep track
  17. rest — what's left
  18. shower — to wash
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bound — certain
  23. track — a song
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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