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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. land — ground
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bark — to shout
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — a country
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. chest — a box
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. sharp — clever
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. pitcher — a jug

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