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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. last — finally
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. kid — child
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. game — a match
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. last — to go on
  22. bark — to shout
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. last — final

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