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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. march — the month
  4. row — a line
  5. can — a tin
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. cell — in biology
  13. can — to be able to
  14. root — the cause
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. row — to paddle
  17. can — a tin
  18. wax — to grow
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. cell — a phone
  22. march — the month
  23. cell — in a prison
  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