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 · prune · squash · saw · land · nail · cue · chair

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cue — for pool
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. saw — the tool
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cue — a signal
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. squash — to crush
  15. prune — to trim
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. squash — the sport
  19. land — ground
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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