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 water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. root — of a plant
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a match
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. vault — a safe
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. spring — of water
  11. deal — to handle
  12. chair — a leader
  13. root — the cause
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. cold — an illness
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. dip — to sink
  18. spring — a coil
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. spring — the season
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. root — of a word
  24. game — a kind of play

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