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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. root — of a word
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. club — for dancing
  7. race — the arms race
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. race — a contest
  10. stem — to come from
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. kid — to tease
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — in cards
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. root — of a plant
  18. race — humankind
  19. kid — child
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. root — the cause
  24. content — the amount

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