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: spell · lean · stock · plane · arm · bark · cold · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. spell — magic
  3. lean — to bend
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bark — to shout
  6. stock — goods
  7. cold — an illness
  8. spell — letters
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. cold — not warm
  15. lean — thin
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. stock — shares
  24. plane — a tool

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