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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. band — a ring
  3. can — a tin
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. object — to protest
  8. can — to be able to
  9. object — an aim
  10. game — wild animals
  11. cue — a hint
  12. content — the amount
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. band — a music group
  17. object — a thing
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. can — a tin
  21. cue — for pool
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. cue — a signal
  24. content — happy

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