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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. tear — from crying
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. clip — to cut
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. rash — hasty
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — an illness
  12. clip — a video
  13. root — of a plant
  14. tear — to rip
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. clip — for paper
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. rash — a series
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. tear — from crying
  21. root — of a word
  22. lean — thin
  23. branch — a division
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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