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: wound · scale · wax · date · ball · wake · game · bark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. ball — a great time
  6. wake — a trail
  7. date — the fruit
  8. game — wild animals
  9. scale — size or range
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. ball — a dance
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wound — an injury
  16. game — a match
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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