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: band · chest · stem · bound · mine · patient · branch · lie

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bound — tied together
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bound — obliged
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stem — to come from
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. band — a ring
  16. mine — for digging
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. branch — a division
  19. chest — a box
  20. band — a music group
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. lie — to recline
  24. bound — certain

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