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 · mate · staff · court · ground · present · cold · track

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. track — a path
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. track — a song
  5. ground — a position
  6. track — to keep track
  7. ground — the earth
  8. present — there
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. mate — a friend
  12. present — the time now
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. present — a gift
  15. staff — a stick
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. mate — a partner
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. court — for sport

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