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: cell · pit · row · vault · patient · bark · degree · coach

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. cell — a phone
  4. vault — a safe
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pit — a hole
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. degree — from a university
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bark — to shout
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. degree — an amount
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. row — a line
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pit — in a race
  22. degree — temperature
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — to paddle

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