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: chest · bank · rule · temple · patient · file · chair · clip

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. rule — a law
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. file — a line of people
  5. chest — a box
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bank — for money
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. clip — a video
  10. chest — of your body
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bank — for money
  14. chair — a leader
  15. clip — to cut
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. clip — for paper
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a tool
  24. rule — government

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