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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. firm — steady
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. kid — to tease
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. file — a tool
  7. firm — a company
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. file — a line of people
  14. stem — to come from
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. file — a document
  17. season — in sport
  18. firm — decided
  19. branch — a division
  20. kid — child
  21. season — of the year
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — a trail
  24. stem — a stem cell

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