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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. face — to point toward
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. land — ground
  7. face — part of the head
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. face — to confront
  12. row — a line
  13. rule — government
  14. land — to come down
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — a law
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. row — to paddle
  23. branch — a division
  24. land — a country

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