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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wound — an injury
  4. shower — rain
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. face — to confront
  12. face — part of the head
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. court — for sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. court — of a king
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. face — to point toward
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bulb — for light

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