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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. prune — to trim
  3. capital — money
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. wake — a trail
  8. capital — a city
  9. file — a document
  10. bark — to shout
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hand — help
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. file — a line of people
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. file — a tool
  20. hand — in cards
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. leaves — of a tree

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