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: field · shower · cabinet · file · fork · spring · season · pound

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. field — for sport
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. season — of the year
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pound — a weight
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. field — a subject
  11. file — a document
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. season — in sport
  14. file — a line of people
  15. field — farmland
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. file — a tool
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. spring — a coil

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