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 · shower · stick · nail · sharp · land · arm · row

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. row — to paddle
  3. sharp — clever
  4. bark — to shout
  5. land — a country
  6. row — a line
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. shower — rain
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. land — ground
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. land — to come down
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — to wash
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. arm — part of the body

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