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: lean · capital · plane · present · bark · row · bass · hand

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. present — the time now
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. capital — a city
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. plane — a tool
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bass — low music
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. hand — in cards
  11. lean — thin
  12. row — a line
  13. present — there
  14. hand — help
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. row — to paddle
  18. lean — to bend
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. capital — money
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. present — a gift
  24. bass — the fish

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