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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. track — a path
  4. wound — an injury
  5. club — for golf
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. plane — a tool
  8. snap — to click
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. track — to keep track
  11. wound — an injury
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — a division
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. club — for dancing
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cold — not warm
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. club — a group
  24. cold — an illness

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