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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mark — a grade
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wake — a trail
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. mark — a trace
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. squash — to crush
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. squash — the sport
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. land — ground
  17. row — a line
  18. row — to paddle
  19. plane — a tool
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. land — a country
  22. land — to come down
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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