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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. rash — a series
  5. clip — to cut
  6. spring — of water
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — hasty
  9. mate — to breed
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. spring — the season
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. clip — for paper
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. clip — a video
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. mate — a partner
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mate — a friend
  24. branch — a division

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