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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. club — for golf
  3. net — after costs
  4. scale — in music
  5. bat — the animal
  6. saw — the tool
  7. root — the cause
  8. net — in sport
  9. scale — size or range
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. net — for catching
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. root — of a plant
  14. club — for dancing
  15. foot — a measure
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. capital — a city
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — money
  21. club — a group
  22. root — of a word
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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