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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. root — the cause
  3. net — after costs
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. court — of a king
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. prune — to trim
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. pit — in a race
  11. net — for catching
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. file — a tool
  15. bound — certain
  16. court — for sport
  17. root — of a word
  18. court — of law
  19. file — a line of people
  20. root — of a plant
  21. prune — to trim
  22. net — in sport
  23. file — a document
  24. pit — a hole

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