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 120 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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. perch — the fish
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. shower — to wash
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. capital — a city
  10. field — for sport
  11. wax — to grow
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. vault — a safe
  14. capital — money
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. row — to paddle
  18. shower — rain
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. field — farmland
  21. root — of a plant
  22. row — a line
  23. field — a subject
  24. root — of a word

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