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: stock · fork · sharp · mine · game · pound · pop · face

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. face — to confront
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. stock — shares
  8. fork — in a road
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pop — music
  16. pop — soda
  17. sharp — clever
  18. mine — for digging
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. stock — goods
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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