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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bark — to shout
  6. cue — for pool
  7. land — to come down
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cue — a hint
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. date — the fruit
  14. file — a tool
  15. rash — hasty
  16. cue — a signal
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. file — a line of people
  19. land — a country
  20. file — a document
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. land — ground

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