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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. last — finally
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — a trail
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. ball — a dance
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. last — final
  15. stem — to come from
  16. bark — to shout
  17. snap — to click
  18. last — to go on
  19. ball — a great time
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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