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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bark — to shout
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. game — wild animals
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mug — a cup
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. row — a line
  11. face — to confront
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. mug — a face
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. face — to point toward
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. mug — to rob
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. face — part of the head
  21. game — a match
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. wound — an injury

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