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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitch — completely
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. spring — a coil
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. tear — to rip
  11. spring — the season
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — a friend
  14. season — in sport
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. season — of the year
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tear — from crying
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. kick — in football
  21. mate — to breed
  22. tear — from crying
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. pitch — a sports field

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