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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. march — music
  3. shower — to wash
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. root — of a plant
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. march — the month
  10. capital — a city
  11. root — of a word
  12. shower — rain
  13. capital — money
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. march — the month
  17. bass — the fish
  18. root — the cause
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bass — low music
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. lean — to bend
  23. lean — thin
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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