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: capital · firm · row · spring · wake · club · swing · root

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  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. firm — decided
  2. root — of a word
  3. spring — a coil
  4. row — a line
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — money
  7. root — the cause
  8. firm — a company
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. firm — steady
  13. swing — to play on
  14. row — to paddle
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — for dancing
  17. swing — music
  18. capital — a city
  19. spring — the season
  20. wake — a trail
  21. club — a group
  22. swing — in golf
  23. spring — of water
  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