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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. content — happy
  4. squash — to crush
  5. root — of a plant
  6. squash — the sport
  7. perch — the fish
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. root — of a word
  12. tear — to rip
  13. root — the cause
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. land — a country
  17. land — to come down
  18. tear — from crying
  19. content — the amount
  20. shower — to wash
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. land — ground
  23. tear — from crying
  24. content — videos and posts

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