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 · march · pound · court · trunk · mouse · prune · mark

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. march — music
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mark — a grade
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. field — for sport
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mark — a trace
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. field — a subject
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. pound — a weight
  20. court — of a king
  21. march — the month
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. march — the month
  24. court — of law

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