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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. squash — to crush
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. root — the cause
  5. spring — of water
  6. cell — in biology
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. root — of a word
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. row — to paddle
  12. cell — a phone
  13. spring — the season
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. spring — a coil
  19. row — a line
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pound — a weight
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. root — of a plant

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