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 120 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 · mine · ball · face · root · pitcher · bark · bulb

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. root — of a word
  6. ball — a great time
  7. face — to point toward
  8. root — of a plant
  9. bark — to shout
  10. field — a subject
  11. ball — a dance
  12. field — for sport
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. field — farmland
  15. mine — for digging
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. bulb — for light
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. root — the cause
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. face — part of the head

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