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: charge · field · chest · court · fork · track · dip · spring

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. court — for sport
  3. track — to keep track
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. spring — a coil
  6. charge — a price
  7. track — a song
  8. field — for sport
  9. chest — of your body
  10. charge — electricity
  11. track — a path
  12. charge — in control
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. field — a subject
  18. dip — to sink
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. spring — the season
  21. chest — a box
  22. field — farmland
  23. chest — of your body
  24. fork — in a road

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