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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ball — a great time
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. spell — a short time
  11. row — to paddle
  12. spell — magic
  13. file — a tool
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. file — a line of people
  16. spell — letters
  17. ball — a dance
  18. bark — to shout
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. file — a document
  21. row — a line
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. coach — a trainer

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