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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. rash — hasty
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. press — to push
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. game — wild animals
  16. hand — help
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. game — a match
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. date — the fruit
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bark — to shout

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