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: mine · pound · root · content · ground · jam · bat · pitcher

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. content — the amount
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. root — of a word
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. content — happy
  13. root — the cause
  14. ground — the earth
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mine — for digging
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. bat — the animal
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. ground — a position
  22. pound — a weight
  23. root — of a plant
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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