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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rush — hurry
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. stem — to come from
  12. row — to paddle
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — a law
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. branch — a division
  19. row — a line
  20. scale — in music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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