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: mine · lean · shower · bark · pop · club · perch · rule

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pop — music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. lean — thin
  5. club — for dancing
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — a group
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. rule — government
  14. bark — to shout
  15. shower — rain
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. perch — the fish
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — a law
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. lean — to bend
  24. pop — to visit

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