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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cold · field · wake · kid · dip · club · branch · craft

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. craft — a skill
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. club — for dancing
  10. wake — a trail
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — to sink
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. club — for golf
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. branch — a division
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. craft — boats
  22. club — a group
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. cold — an illness

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