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: race · drill · face · march · chest · branch · land · firm

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. branch — a division
  3. firm — decided
  4. march — music
  5. land — a country
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. chest — of your body
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. firm — a company
  11. chest — of your body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. land — ground
  14. march — the month
  15. chest — a box
  16. race — the arms race
  17. land — to come down
  18. drill — army training
  19. face — part of the head
  20. firm — steady
  21. drill — the tool
  22. race — humankind
  23. march — the month
  24. branch — of a tree

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