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 116 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: sharp · spring · drill · bulb · bark · content · trunk · pound

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pound — a weight
  5. drill — a practice
  6. spring — the season
  7. bulb — for light
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. drill — the tool
  11. spring — of water
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. content — the amount
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. drill — army training
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. bark — to shout
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. sharp — clever
  24. bark — of a tree

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