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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. hand — help
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. object — a thing
  6. fall — the season
  7. object — to protest
  8. branch — a division
  9. land — to come down
  10. spring — of water
  11. fall — to drop
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. cap — a lid
  14. spring — a coil
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. cap — of ice
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cap — a hat
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. object — an aim
  22. fall — to drop
  23. spring — the season
  24. land — ground

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