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 120 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: tear · kid · spell · hand · wax · ground · lie · root

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — help
  3. tear — to rip
  4. ground — the earth
  5. spell — magic
  6. root — of a word
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wax — to grow
  12. ground — crushed
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. spell — letters
  15. ground — a position
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lie — to recline
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. spell — a short time
  20. root — of a plant
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. root — the cause
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. tear — from crying

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