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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. branch — a division
  4. craft — boats
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. pit — a hole
  8. fine — high quality
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. pit — in a race
  11. march — the month
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fine — all right
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. craft — a skill
  24. court — of a king

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