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

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. court — for sport
  3. bark — to shout
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. chip — to eat
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. chip — for betting
  12. rule — government
  13. swing — to play on
  14. branch — a division
  15. rule — a law
  16. tube — a container
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. court — of a king
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. court — of law
  21. swing — in golf
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. swing — music
  24. straw — dry grass

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