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: race · stem · roll · spring · saw · present · charge · mine

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. present — a gift
  5. stem — to come from
  6. charge — electricity
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — of water
  11. charge — a price
  12. saw — the tool
  13. roll — a list
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. race — a contest
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. race — the arms race
  18. present — the time now
  19. spring — the season
  20. present — there
  21. mine — for digging
  22. roll — a cake
  23. charge — in control
  24. saw — the tool

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