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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. track — to keep track
  3. object — an aim
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. kid — to tease
  6. rash — a series
  7. root — the cause
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. cell — a phone
  10. clip — a video
  11. track — a song
  12. root — of a word
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. object — a thing
  15. cell — in biology
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — child
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. root — of a plant
  21. track — a path
  22. rash — hasty
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. clip — for paper

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