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 · key · chip · cold · file · fan · sharp · date

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. key — for a lock
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. key — the most important part
  10. chip — to eat
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. chip — for betting
  17. date — the fruit
  18. file — a document
  19. bark — to shout
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. key — in music
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — the Cold War

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