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: march · patient · branch · spell · pound · rule · clip · game

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. pound — a weight
  4. march — the month
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. march — the month
  8. clip — a video
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. spell — a short time
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — a law
  13. game — a match
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. clip — to cut
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. rule — government
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. march — music
  24. game — wild animals

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