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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bank — for money
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. prune — to trim
  6. spring — the season
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. pass — a permit
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bank — for money
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cold — an illness
  16. spring — of water
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. pass — to succeed

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