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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. shower — to wash
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. branch — a division
  7. field — a subject
  8. race — humankind
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. charge — electricity
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. race — a contest
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. band — a music group
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. band — a ring
  19. shower — rain
  20. field — farmland
  21. charge — in control
  22. field — for sport
  23. race — the arms race
  24. charge — a price

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