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: stand · snap · march · court · swing · band · field · pound

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. march — music
  3. stand — to bear
  4. court — of a king
  5. band — a music group
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. field — for sport
  8. snap — to click
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. field — farmland
  12. band — a ring
  13. court — for sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. swing — music
  18. march — the month
  19. swing — in golf
  20. court — of law
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. swing — to play on
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. march — the month

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