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: march · kick · present · chip · field · row · mouse · game

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. march — music
  4. chip — to eat
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. present — the time now
  7. march — the month
  8. kick — in football
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — a match
  11. field — farmland
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. row — a line
  16. present — there
  17. field — for sport
  18. present — a gift
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. game — wild animals
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. march — the month
  23. row — to paddle
  24. mouse — for a computer

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