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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. scale — in music
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wound — an injury
  9. date — the fruit
  10. bark — to shout
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. chest — of your body
  16. key — for a lock
  17. chest — of your body
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. court — of a king
  21. chest — a box
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. court — for sport
  24. wound — an injury

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