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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. spell — letters
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. root — the cause
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mate — to breed
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. root — of a plant
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. stem — to come from
  14. band — a ring
  15. sharp — clever
  16. mate — a partner
  17. root — of a word
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. spell — magic
  23. pound — a weight
  24. spell — a short time

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