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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. can — a tin
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. tear — from crying
  7. snap — to click
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. tear — from crying
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. swing — to play on
  13. kick — in football
  14. bark — to shout
  15. tear — to rip
  16. season — in sport
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. swing — in golf
  19. can — to be able to
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. season — of the year
  22. swing — music
  23. mine — for digging
  24. can — a tin

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