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 116 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bear — the animal
  5. degree — temperature
  6. spring — the season
  7. stock — shares
  8. content — happy
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. capital — money
  13. stock — goods
  14. capital — a city
  15. content — the amount
  16. degree — an amount
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. prune — to trim
  19. spring — of water
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stem — to come from
  23. bear — the animal
  24. prune — to trim

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