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: root · arm · cold · mark · date · bass · rush · sharp

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bass — the fish
  4. root — of a plant
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. date — the fruit
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cold — not warm
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. mark — a trace
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bass — low music
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. root — of a word
  18. rush — hurry
  19. root — the cause
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. mark — a grade
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. rush — a thrill

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