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: root · leaves · spring · hide · hand · band · drill · pit

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. drill — the tool
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hand — help
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. drill — a practice
  10. pit — in a race
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pit — a hole
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. root — the cause
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. root — of a plant
  20. root — of a word
  21. drill — army training
  22. band — a music group
  23. spring — the season
  24. spring — of water

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