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 120 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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. root — the cause
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. season — of the year
  13. rest — what's left
  14. season — in sport
  15. rush — hurry
  16. root — of a word
  17. rest — a break
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rest — what's left
  22. race — the arms race
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. season — to add flavour

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