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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · wind · rush · pitch · chest · fine · sharp · bore

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. bark — to shout
  4. chest — a box
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bore — to tire
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. rush — hurry
  14. wind — moving air
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fine — high quality
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bore — to drill
  24. fine — a penalty

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