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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. roll — a cake
  5. ground — crushed
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. stem — to come from
  8. spell — letters
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. march — the month
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. march — music
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. march — the month
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. spell — magic
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — a position
  20. roll — a list
  21. spell — a short time
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. stem — a stem cell

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