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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. spring — a coil
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. face — part of the head
  6. court — for sport
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. face — to confront
  9. court — of law
  10. race — the arms race
  11. capital — money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. race — a contest
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. face — to point toward
  16. court — of a king
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bark — to shout
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — of water
  21. capital — a city
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. race — humankind
  24. plane — a tool

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