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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. scale — in music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. staff — a stick
  7. row — a line
  8. staff — employees
  9. scale — size or range
  10. craft — boats
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. spell — letters
  14. stem — to come from
  15. spell — magic
  16. sharp — clever
  17. craft — a skill
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. staff — employees
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. spell — a short time

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