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

Word bank: cold · squash · kid · hide · trunk · branch · tube · wind

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. squash — the sport
  8. branch — a division
  9. tube — the underground
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cold — not warm
  22. tube — a container
  23. cold — an illness
  24. kid — to tease

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