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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. charge — electricity
  3. cold — not warm
  4. staff — employees
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. charge — a price
  10. file — a document
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. rule — government
  13. file — a line of people
  14. rule — a law
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. dip — to sink
  18. staff — employees
  19. branch — a division
  20. file — a tool
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. cold — an illness
  23. charge — in control
  24. staff — a stick

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