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 120 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: fall · kid · face · ball · capital · bat · root · prune

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. kid — to tease
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. face — part of the head
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fall — the season
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bat — the animal
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a word
  12. capital — a city
  13. prune — to trim
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. ball — a dance
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. capital — money
  22. fall — to drop
  23. prune — to trim
  24. face — to confront

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