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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. court — of law
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. court — of a king
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. court — for sport
  8. root — of a word
  9. wind — moving air
  10. root — of a plant
  11. wind — moving air
  12. present — the time now
  13. rest — a break
  14. root — the cause
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. present — a gift
  17. rest — what's left
  18. present — there
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. rest — what's left
  22. craft — a skill
  23. shower — rain
  24. wind — to turn a key

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