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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bass — low music
  3. court — of a king
  4. shower — rain
  5. bound — tied together
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. court — for sport
  8. club — for golf
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. kick — in football
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bass — the fish
  15. court — of law
  16. bound — certain
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. club — for dancing
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. club — a group
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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