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

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. game — wild animals
  4. root — of a word
  5. pitch — completely
  6. kid — child
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bulb — for light
  10. game — a match
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. chair — a leader
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. kid — to tease
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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