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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. kid — child
  3. ball — a great time
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bark — to shout
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. kid — to tease
  15. wake — a trail
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. date — the fruit
  21. wound — an injury
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. nail — on a finger

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