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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. root — of a plant
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. race — a contest
  5. net — for catching
  6. spring — a coil
  7. prune — to trim
  8. spring — the season
  9. root — the cause
  10. court — for sport
  11. game — a match
  12. charge — a price
  13. court — of a king
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — humankind
  17. prune — to trim
  18. net — after costs
  19. spring — of water
  20. game — wild animals
  21. net — in sport
  22. root — of a word
  23. court — of law
  24. charge — in control

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