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: field · clip · stock · bore · jam · chest · wake · press

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. field — for sport
  3. clip — a video
  4. stock — goods
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. chest — of your body
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. stock — shares
  12. press — to push
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. field — farmland
  15. clip — for paper
  16. chest — a box
  17. clip — to cut
  18. press — a publisher
  19. press — newspapers
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. bore — to drill
  22. chest — of your body
  23. field — a subject
  24. wake — a trail

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