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 116 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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. ground — a position
  3. perch — the fish
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. bound — obliged
  6. march — music
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bound — certain
  12. march — the month
  13. ground — the earth
  14. pound — a weight
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. spring — the season
  17. dip — to sink
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. march — the month
  21. bound — tied together
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. pound — to hit hard

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