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 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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — the fish
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. chest — a box
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. field — farmland
  8. chest — of your body
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. field — a subject
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. branch — a division
  18. lean — thin
  19. degree — from a university
  20. lean — to bend
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bass — low music
  23. field — for sport
  24. chest — of your body

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