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 120 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: trunk · saw · mug · wind · wound · land · spell · branch

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mug — a face
  4. spell — a short time
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. saw — the tool
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mug — to rob
  9. spell — magic
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. mug — a cup
  12. land — to come down
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. branch — a division
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. land — a country
  18. wind — moving air
  19. saw — the tool
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. spell — letters
  23. land — ground
  24. branch — of a bank

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