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 120 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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. root — of a plant
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. wound — an injury
  8. scale — size or range
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. root — the cause
  11. content — the amount
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. scale — in music
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wound — an injury
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pop — to visit
  19. root — of a word
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pop — soda
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. pop — music
  24. scale — for weighing

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