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's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. root — of a plant
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. file — a document
  6. roll — a list
  7. root — of a word
  8. roll — a cake
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. cap — of ice
  12. root — the cause
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. cap — a lid
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — a line
  20. file — a tool
  21. cap — a hat
  22. file — a line of people
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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