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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. mate — a partner
  3. net — in sport
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. branch — a division
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. hand — help
  8. spell — letters
  9. mate — to breed
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. mate — a friend
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. net — for catching
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — in cards
  23. spell — magic
  24. straw — a straw man

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