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: mine · cue · hide · spell · face · field · chest · stick

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. chest — of your body
  5. spell — a short time
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — to point toward
  9. spell — magic
  10. cue — for pool
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. cue — a hint
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. field — a subject
  17. chest — of your body
  18. mine — for digging
  19. spell — letters
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — for sport
  22. face — part of the head
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. chest — a box

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