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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. spring — the season
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. branch — a division
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. chair — a leader
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. spring — of water
  18. board — to get on
  19. wound — an injury
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. board — a committee
  22. spring — a coil
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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