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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. cell — in biology
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — a division
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rule — government
  14. cell — a phone
  15. file — a line of people
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. file — a document
  18. rule — a law
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. kick — in football
  22. bat — the animal
  23. file — a tool
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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