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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. present — the time now
  3. pop — soda
  4. clip — for paper
  5. present — a gift
  6. pop — music
  7. degree — temperature
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. root — the cause
  11. scale — in music
  12. pop — to visit
  13. root — of a plant
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — an amount
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. present — there
  18. field — a subject
  19. file — a line of people
  20. field — for sport
  21. file — a document
  22. root — of a word
  23. file — a tool
  24. field — farmland

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