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: bark · rush · court · march · spring · ball · spell · pop

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. spell — letters
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. spring — of water
  6. march — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. ball — a dance
  9. bark — to shout
  10. court — for sport
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. spring — the season
  14. ball — a great time
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. pop — soda
  19. court — of a king
  20. march — the month
  21. court — of law
  22. march — the month
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rush — hurry

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