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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. perch — the fish
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. drill — a practice
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. branch — a division
  12. net — in sport
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. drill — army training
  17. drill — the tool
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. net — after costs
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — for betting
  22. cold — an illness
  23. net — for catching
  24. fan — a supporter

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