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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. land — ground
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. march — music
  24. arm — part of the body

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