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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — all right
  4. lean — to bend
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. lean — thin
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spell — a short time
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. spell — letters
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. branch — a division
  15. capital — a city
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. spell — magic
  21. fine — high quality
  22. cell — a phone
  23. capital — money
  24. lean — to rest against

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