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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. root — of a plant
  3. track — a path
  4. season — of the year
  5. band — a ring
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. root — the cause
  8. pop — music
  9. mine — for digging
  10. wind — moving air
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. band — a music group
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pop — soda
  16. track — a song
  17. root — of a word
  18. pop — to visit
  19. deal — to handle
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. season — in sport
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. wind — to turn a key

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