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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. last — final
  5. chest — of your body
  6. spring — of water
  7. last — finally
  8. saw — the tool
  9. last — to go on
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — of a word
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. spring — the season
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — to shout
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. snap — to click
  21. band — a ring
  22. spring — a coil
  23. band — a music group
  24. saw — the tool

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