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 116 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 · mate · hand · wound · bulb · plane · land · present

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bulb — for light
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. mate — a partner
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. land — to come down
  9. root — the cause
  10. mate — to breed
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. land — a country
  14. hand — in cards
  15. wound — an injury
  16. present — there
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. root — of a plant
  19. present — the time now
  20. wound — an injury
  21. present — a gift
  22. plane — a tool
  23. root — of a word
  24. land — ground

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