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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. march — music
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. bear — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. game — a match
  10. bass — low music
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bear — the animal
  14. chest — of your body
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pound — a weight
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bass — the fish
  19. march — the month
  20. hand — help
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pound — for dogs

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