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 124 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: wound · ball · spell · branch · leaves · net · squash · mine

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. spell — letters
  3. mine — for digging
  4. spell — magic
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. squash — the sport
  7. net — after costs
  8. ball — a great time
  9. ball — a dance
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. branch — a division
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. net — in sport
  16. wound — an injury
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. squash — to crush
  22. net — for catching
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. wound — an injury

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