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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. saw — the tool
  3. shower — rain
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bound — tied together
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bound — obliged
  9. season — of the year
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. hand — help
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. season — in sport
  17. bound — certain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. saw — the tool
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bark — to shout
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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