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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. tear — to rip
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. cue — a hint
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cell — a phone
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cell — in biology
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. band — a music group
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. cue — a signal
  19. field — a subject
  20. band — a ring
  21. cue — for pool
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. field — for sport

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