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: wound · clip · band · branch · stick · face · trunk · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. band — a ring
  5. clip — for paper
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. clip — to cut
  8. branch — a division
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. face — part of the head
  12. clip — a video
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. band — a music group
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wound — an injury
  21. face — to confront
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. face — to point toward
  24. mine — belonging to me

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