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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. spring — of water
  6. pound — a weight
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bark — to shout
  9. spring — the season
  10. game — a match
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — wild animals
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. tube — the underground
  17. row — a line
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. tube — a container
  24. spring — a coil

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