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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. snap — to click
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. lean — to bend
  5. wound — an injury
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. branch — a division
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. band — a music group
  20. lean — thin
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a ring

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