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: trunk · wake · sharp · wound · chip · bat · mine · rock

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — a stone
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wound — an injury
  6. mine — for digging
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. chip — for betting
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bat — the animal
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. rock — music

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