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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. hand — in cards
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — letters
  7. rest — a break
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. squash — to crush
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. branch — a division
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. spell — magic
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — to shout
  18. hand — help
  19. rest — what's left
  20. saw — the tool
  21. squash — the sport
  22. saw — the tool
  23. rush — hurry
  24. squash — the vegetable

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