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: bark · squash · court · field · mine · wave · tube · sharp

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. court — of law
  4. squash — the sport
  5. tube — a container
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. field — a subject
  8. bark — to shout
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. field — farmland
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. field — for sport
  14. court — for sport
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. squash — to crush
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. mine — for digging
  20. tube — the underground
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. court — of a king

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