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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. pound — a weight
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. ground — crushed
  9. drill — the tool
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. ground — the earth
  13. game — a match
  14. ground — a position
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. shower — to wash
  18. game — wild animals
  19. tube — the underground
  20. drill — a practice
  21. shower — rain
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. tube — a container

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