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 · bark · roll · bat · wound · fall · rush · dip

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. bat — the animal
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. band — a ring
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. fall — the season
  9. wound — an injury
  10. roll — a cake
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. roll — a list
  14. rush — hurry
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. fall — to drop
  19. band — a music group
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. dip — to sink

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