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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  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. root — of a word
  2. spring — of water
  3. ground — crushed
  4. court — of law
  5. club — for dancing
  6. spring — a coil
  7. club — a group
  8. court — of a king
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. board — to get on
  11. board — a committee
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. spring — the season
  14. root — the cause
  15. ground — the earth
  16. court — for sport
  17. club — for golf
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mine — for digging
  20. branch — a division
  21. ground — a position
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. board — a flat piece
  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