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: land · chest · mark · rock · shower · perch · wax · bark

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. shower — rain
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. land — a country
  10. bark — to shout
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a trace
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. land — to come down
  18. perch — the fish
  19. land — ground
  20. chest — a box
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wax — to grow

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