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: game · pop · kid · snap · fan · stem · branch · row

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. snap — to click
  3. row — to paddle
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pop — music
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — child
  14. stem — to come from
  15. game — a match
  16. row — a line
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. game — wild animals
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — a division
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fan — to cool the air

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