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: saw · bat · craft · rule · stem · ground · kid · race

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. ground — a position
  4. craft — boats
  5. race — a contest
  6. stem — to come from
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. ground — the earth
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — the tool
  12. rule — government
  13. craft — a skill
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — humankind
  16. rule — a law
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. ground — crushed
  19. kid — child
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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