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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. key — in music
  4. rest — what's left
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — the most important part
  7. march — the month
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. march — music
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — a tool
  15. spring — of water
  16. march — the month
  17. rest — a break
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bark — to shout
  20. rest — what's left
  21. spring — the season
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. spring — a coil
  24. cell — a phone

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