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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bear — the animal
  4. game — a match
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. land — to come down
  7. bark — to shout
  8. staff — employees
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bear — the animal
  13. game — wild animals
  14. file — a document
  15. branch — a division
  16. race — humankind
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. staff — employees
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. staff — a stick
  21. race — a contest
  22. file — a tool
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. game — a kind of play

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