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: band · root · pitch · date · cold · club · drill · ground

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — of a plant
  3. drill — the tool
  4. club — for dancing
  5. ground — crushed
  6. band — a music group
  7. root — the cause
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. club — a group
  11. pitch — completely
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — army training
  14. ground — the earth
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — the fruit
  20. cold — not warm
  21. band — a ring
  22. club — for golf
  23. ground — a position
  24. pitch — a sports field

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