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: cold · cell · stem · root · pitcher · wax · track · rash

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wax — to grow
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. root — of a word
  5. cell — in biology
  6. track — a path
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. cold — not warm
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a plant
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. track — a song
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cell — a phone
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. track — to keep track
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. pitcher — a jug

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