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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. kid — child
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mate — a friend
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. kid — to tease
  13. mate — to breed
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cold — not warm
  18. mate — a partner

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