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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. prune — to trim
  6. net — in sport
  7. net — for catching
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. branch — a division
  10. track — to keep track
  11. face — to point toward
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. tear — from crying
  15. track — a path
  16. bear — the animal
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. net — after costs
  19. track — a song
  20. wax — to grow
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bear — the animal
  24. tear — to rip

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