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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ground · root · season · cold · branch · bound · coach · race

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. root — of a plant
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bound — certain
  6. ground — crushed
  7. season — in sport
  8. cold — an illness
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. root — of a word
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — a position
  14. cold — not warm
  15. season — of the year
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. race — humankind
  18. branch — a division
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. root — the cause
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — tied together
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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