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 116 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: dip · mate · degree · branch · stock · perch · deal · cell

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. branch — a division
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mate — a partner
  6. perch — the fish
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mate — a friend
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. degree — temperature
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. stock — shares
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. dip — to sink
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. mate — to breed
  21. cell — in biology
  22. deal — to handle
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. stock — goods

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