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: current · stock · field · kid · capital · land · kick · fan

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. kid — child
  3. kick — in football
  4. land — a country
  5. current — electric
  6. capital — money
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. field — a subject
  9. stock — goods
  10. field — farmland
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. stock — shares
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. kid — to tease
  17. capital — a city
  18. land — ground
  19. field — for sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. current — happening now
  22. land — to come down
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. current — of water

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