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: fan · net · cell · prune · bark · mark · chest · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cell — in biology
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. net — after costs
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. chest — a box
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. mark — a trace
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. net — for catching
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. net — in sport
  17. bark — to shout
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. mark — a grade
  21. chest — of your body
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. chest — of your body

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