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: straw · foot · mug · cabinet · field · tear · spell · perch

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. perch — the fish
  8. field — for sport
  9. mug — a face
  10. tear — from crying
  11. field — farmland
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. spell — magic
  16. mug — to rob
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. field — a subject
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mug — a cup
  24. straw — dry grass

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