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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. file — a tool
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. shower — rain
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. shower — to wash
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. file — a document
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. bound — obliged
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — to come from
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in biology
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. file — a line of people

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