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: bear · straw · saw · branch · track · land · snap · cap

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. cap — of ice
  3. branch — a division
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. land — to come down
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. cap — a lid
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. land — ground
  10. track — a song
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. land — a country
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. cap — a hat
  15. saw — the tool
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. saw — the tool
  18. snap — to click
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — the animal
  22. track — a path
  23. track — to keep track
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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