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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rule — government
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. shower — to wash
  7. tear — to rip
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. craft — a skill
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rule — a law
  13. bear — the animal
  14. branch — a division
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. tear — from crying
  18. shower — rain
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. bear — the animal
  22. craft — boats
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chest — a box

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