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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. swing — music
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. root — of a word
  6. file — a line of people
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. season — in sport
  10. root — of a plant
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. swing — in golf
  17. root — the cause
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bark — to shout
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. season — of the year
  24. file — a document

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