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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. race — humankind
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. race — a contest
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. kid — to tease
  7. net — for catching
  8. fine — high quality
  9. branch — a division
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. swing — music
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. scale — size or range
  14. fine — all right
  15. scale — in music
  16. net — in sport
  17. swing — to play on
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. race — the arms race
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. kid — child
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. swing — in golf

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