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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. race — humankind
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. cell — a phone
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bore — to tire
  12. race — a contest
  13. content — the amount
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. bore — to drill
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. date — the fruit
  19. content — happy
  20. cell — in biology
  21. race — the arms race
  22. rule — government
  23. root — the cause
  24. rule — a law

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