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: cell · cold · kid · stock · branch · wind · lie · bank

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bank — of a river
  4. wind — moving air
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — child
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cold — not warm
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — to recline
  16. bank — for money
  17. stock — goods
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bank — for money
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cell — a phone
  24. branch — a division

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