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: lean · pop · saw · net · field · date · ball · wake

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. lean — thin
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. pop — to visit
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. net — in sport
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. ball — a dance
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. field — a subject
  15. pop — music
  16. pop — soda
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. lean — to bend
  19. field — for sport
  20. ball — a great time
  21. net — after costs
  22. wake — a trail
  23. net — for catching
  24. date — the fruit

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