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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. clip — to cut
  5. cold — not warm
  6. branch — a division
  7. clip — a video
  8. bound — certain
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bound — obliged
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. pound — a weight
  13. current — electric
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bound — tied together
  16. cold — an illness
  17. current — happening now
  18. pound — for dogs

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