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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. branch — a division
  3. land — ground
  4. bat — the animal
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. land — a country
  8. stem — to come from
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. land — to come down
  14. perch — the fish
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bat — in an idiom

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