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: stick · kid · chip · jam · bark · field · shower · prune

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — to tease
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. chip — to eat
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. field — for sport
  10. prune — to trim
  11. shower — to wash
  12. field — a subject
  13. bark — to shout
  14. chip — for betting
  15. field — farmland
  16. shower — rain
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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