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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. ball — a great time
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. craft — boats
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. bark — to shout
  9. file — a line of people
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. pound — a weight
  13. file — a document
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. sharp — clever
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. file — a tool
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. rock — music
  24. craft — a skill

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