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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. clip — to cut
  3. dip — to sink
  4. pound — a weight
  5. clip — a video
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cold — an illness
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fine — all right
  17. scale — size or range
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. scale — in music
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. branch — a division
  24. cold — not warm

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