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: march · branch · suit · band · cold · staff · wound · hand

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. march — music
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. staff — employees
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. hand — help
  7. staff — employees
  8. march — the month
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. cold — not warm
  12. wound — an injury
  13. hand — in cards
  14. branch — a division
  15. suit — in cards
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. march — the month
  19. suit — clothes
  20. band — a music group
  21. suit — to fit
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cold — an illness
  24. staff — a stick

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