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: kick · degree · wave · net · kid · field · chest · lean

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — farmland
  4. chest — of your body
  5. net — in sport
  6. degree — temperature
  7. field — for sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. degree — from a university
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — in football
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. net — after costs
  18. kid — child
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. lean — thin
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. chest — a box
  23. degree — an amount
  24. field — a subject

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