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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. rule — government
  6. file — a line of people
  7. branch — a division
  8. row — a line
  9. key — for a lock
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a dance
  12. file — a tool
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. rule — a law
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. key — the most important part
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. capital — a city
  22. ball — a great time
  23. file — a document
  24. bat — the animal

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