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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bark — to shout
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wax — to grow
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — a list
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. mine — for digging
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. game — a match

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