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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bat — the animal
  4. band — a ring
  5. root — of a word
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. mate — a friend
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. tear — from crying
  11. band — a music group
  12. tear — to rip
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. object — a thing
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. root — the cause
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. object — to protest
  22. object — an aim
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mate — to breed

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