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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. kid — to tease
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. kid — child
  5. pop — soda
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cap — a hat
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cap — of ice
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. root — of a plant
  13. pop — music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. root — of a word
  17. bass — low music
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pop — to visit
  23. root — the cause
  24. leaves — of a tree

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