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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. bore — to tire
  6. prune — to trim
  7. face — part of the head
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bore — to drill
  11. stand — to bear
  12. band — a music group
  13. bark — to shout
  14. band — a ring
  15. degree — from a university
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hand — help
  18. face — to confront
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. degree — temperature
  24. band — a rubber band

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