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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. root — of a word
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. pit — in a race
  5. bound — obliged
  6. pit — a hole
  7. scale — size or range
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. cold — an illness
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — the earth
  12. scale — in music
  13. bound — certain
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bound — tied together
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. swing — to play on
  20. swing — music
  21. rock — a stone
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. ground — a position

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