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 116 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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. board — to get on
  3. row — a line
  4. wax — to grow
  5. board — a committee
  6. shower — to wash
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. row — to paddle
  9. shower — rain
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. race — humankind
  12. bear — the animal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. bark — to shout
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bear — the animal
  24. row — a quarrel

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