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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stock — goods
  6. root — the cause
  7. kid — child
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. ground — a position
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. chest — of your body
  15. last — final
  16. ground — the earth
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. row — to paddle
  19. chest — a box
  20. kid — to tease
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. stock — shares
  24. ground — crushed

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