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: scale · drill · temple · bat · court · staff · branch · spring

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. court — of a king
  3. bat — the animal
  4. staff — employees
  5. spring — a coil
  6. drill — a practice
  7. branch — a division
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. court — of law
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. court — for sport
  12. spring — the season
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. drill — the tool
  15. scale — in music
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. drill — army training
  24. spring — of water

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