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: row · trunk · bat · face · track · leaves · bound · degree

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. face — to confront
  3. track — a path
  4. face — to point toward
  5. row — a line
  6. bat — the animal
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bound — obliged
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. degree — an amount
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bound — certain
  16. degree — temperature
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. track — to keep track
  22. face — part of the head
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. trunk — of a car

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