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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. squash — the sport
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. squash — to crush
  6. root — the cause
  7. rush — hurry
  8. clip — for paper
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. perch — the fish
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. clip — to cut
  13. spring — the season
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. root — of a plant
  16. spring — of water
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. root — of a word
  19. clip — a video
  20. pass — a permit
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. spring — a coil
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rush — a thrill

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