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: track · bat · bark · bowl · drill · fall · kid · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. drill — army training
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. track — a path
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bark — to shout
  12. fall — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. track — to keep track
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. kid — child
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. fall — to drop
  23. kid — to tease
  24. track — a song

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