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 116 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: bowl · spring · branch · rule · rock · trunk · content · last

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. rule — a law
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. spring — the season
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. rule — government
  15. branch — a division
  16. rock — music
  17. content — happy
  18. spring — a coil
  19. last — finally
  20. spring — of water
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. content — the amount
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. branch — of a tree

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