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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. plane — a tool
  4. march — the month
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. swing — to play on
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. march — music
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — shares
  14. stock — goods
  15. march — the month
  16. land — a country
  17. swing — music
  18. pitch — completely
  19. swing — in golf
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bark — to shout
  24. land — ground

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