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: calf · march · spring · perch · board · court · track · prune

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. board — a committee
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. march — music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spring — a coil
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. track — a song
  11. track — to keep track
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. spring — of water
  14. track — a path
  15. court — of law
  16. prune — to trim
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. board — to get on
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. march — the month
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — for sport
  24. spring — the season

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