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: branch · straw · safe · cold · rule · bowl · wake · tube

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. wake — a trail
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cold — an illness
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. rule — government
  14. cold — not warm
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. rule — a law
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. branch — a division
  24. wake — before a funeral

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