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: club · field · game · foot · ground · file · staff · dip

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. foot — a measure
  3. game — a match
  4. club — for dancing
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. file — a tool
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. club — for golf
  10. file — a line of people
  11. staff — employees
  12. field — farmland
  13. ground — a position
  14. club — a group
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. field — a subject
  17. dip — to sink
  18. ground — crushed
  19. staff — a stick
  20. field — for sport
  21. ground — the earth
  22. game — wild animals
  23. staff — employees
  24. foot — the bottom

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