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: cell · degree · foot · stem · cold · bowl · root · drill

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. degree — an amount
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. foot — a measure
  7. cold — not warm
  8. drill — a practice
  9. degree — temperature
  10. root — of a plant
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. root — the cause
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. degree — from a university
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — the tool
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. cold — the Cold War

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