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: wax · stock · field · patient · pitch · straw · mark · season

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. mark — a trace
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pitch — completely
  6. wax — to grow
  7. field — for sport
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. season — of the year
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. field — a subject
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. mark — a grade
  15. stock — goods
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. field — farmland
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. patient — a sick person

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