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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. season — of the year
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. perch — the fish
  7. hand — in cards
  8. tear — to rip
  9. season — in sport
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cold — not warm
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. content — the amount
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — boats
  18. content — happy
  19. hand — help
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bark — to shout
  22. tear — from crying
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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