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: bass · root · bark · chest · perch · clip · cap · face

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bass — low music
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cap — a lid
  5. face — part of the head
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. chest — a box
  16. cap — of ice
  17. root — of a plant
  18. root — of a word
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — to point toward
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bark — to shout
  23. root — the cause
  24. clip — a video

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