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: band · pitcher · can · arm · bark · tear · bat · mine

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. can — a tin
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. can — a tin
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bark — to shout
  18. band — a music group
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. band — a ring
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — for digging

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