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 116 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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. ground — a position
  5. mine — for digging
  6. swing — music
  7. bat — the animal
  8. swing — in golf
  9. face — part of the head
  10. suit — clothes
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bark — to shout
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. suit — to fit
  15. face — to confront
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. face — to point toward
  18. race — humankind
  19. suit — in cards
  20. race — the arms race
  21. ground — the earth
  22. race — a contest
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ground — crushed

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