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: march · club · branch · saw · chest · present · bark · wind

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. chest — a box
  4. saw — the tool
  5. club — a group
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — a division
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. club — for dancing
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — moving air
  14. present — a gift
  15. bark — to shout
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. march — the month
  18. saw — the tool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. club — for golf
  21. present — the time now
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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