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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. bat — the animal
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fork — in a road
  6. club — a group
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — the season
  9. rule — a law
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. club — for golf
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. rule — government
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. club — for dancing

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