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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. field — farmland
  4. file — a line of people
  5. club — for golf
  6. field — a subject
  7. rest — a break
  8. shower — rain
  9. root — the cause
  10. club — for dancing
  11. file — a document
  12. field — for sport
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. file — a tool
  17. root — of a plant
  18. club — a group
  19. root — of a word
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. rest — what's left
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rest — what's left

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