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

Word bank: cell · bear · stand · bark · dip · cold · press · kid

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. cold — not warm
  7. press — newspapers
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. press — a publisher
  10. cell — a phone
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bear — the animal
  13. dip — to sink
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. cell — in biology
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. cold — an illness
  21. press — to push
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bark — to shout
  24. cell — in a prison

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