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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. march — the month
  3. band — a music group
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. pit — a hole
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. date — the fruit
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pit — in a race
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — a cake
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. branch — a division
  19. band — a ring
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. march — music
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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