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 120 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: hide · fork · temple · deal · spring · chest · field · shower

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. field — farmland
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. spring — a coil
  9. chest — a box
  10. shower — to wash
  11. spring — the season
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chest — of your body
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. field — for sport
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. shower — rain
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. field — a subject
  23. fork — in a road
  24. deal — an agreement

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