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: land · chest · toast · squash · clip · branch · net · ruler

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. land — to come down
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. squash — to crush
  5. net — after costs
  6. clip — for paper
  7. squash — the sport
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. net — in sport
  10. land — a country
  11. chest — of your body
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. land — ground
  14. chest — of your body
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. net — for catching
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — a video
  20. chest — a box
  21. toast — bread
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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