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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. dip — to sink
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — shares
  7. content — the amount
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. file — a tool
  11. tube — a container
  12. clip — a video
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. file — a line of people
  15. content — happy
  16. file — a document
  17. bark — to shout
  18. tube — the underground
  19. clip — to cut
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. content — videos and posts

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