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: ruler · bat · clip · prune · craft · face · march · branch

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. march — music
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. face — to confront
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. march — the month
  10. clip — a video
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. branch — a division
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bat — the animal
  17. face — to point toward
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. prune — to trim
  23. craft — a skill
  24. clip — for paper

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