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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. wax — to grow
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. current — electric
  6. rule — government
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bark — to shout
  9. clip — for paper
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. current — happening now
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rule — a law
  16. current — of water
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. clip — a video
  19. pop — soda
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. pop — music
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pop — to visit

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