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: rush · mate · ground · pop · stem · march · stock · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rush — hurry
  3. stock — shares
  4. land — a country
  5. mate — a partner
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. pop — music
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mate — to breed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. pop — soda
  12. ground — crushed
  13. land — ground
  14. stem — to come from
  15. march — the month
  16. stock — goods
  17. mate — a friend
  18. ground — a position
  19. pop — to visit
  20. march — music
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. march — the month

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