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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — a trail
  3. fall — to drop
  4. band — a music group
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. dip — to sink
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — a line
  10. fall — the season
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. band — a ring
  13. bark — to shout
  14. row — to paddle
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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