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 120 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 · stand · pit · cell · deal · trunk · capital · game

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. game — a match
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. deal — to handle
  15. cell — in biology
  16. stand — to bear
  17. pit — in a race
  18. capital — money
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. bark — to shout
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. capital — a city

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