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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. wound — an injury
  4. kick — in football
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. bore — to drill
  8. wound — an injury
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. file — a tool
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. bore — to tire
  14. file — a document
  15. race — a contest
  16. branch — a division
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — humankind
  19. file — a line of people
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. capital — money

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