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 116 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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. lean — to bend
  5. root — of a word
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spring — the season
  8. squash — to crush
  9. lean — thin
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. spring — of water
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. saw — the tool
  17. spring — a coil
  18. wound — an injury
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. root — the cause
  21. bark — to shout
  22. root — of a plant
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. squash — the sport

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