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: present · hand · spring · wax · can · branch · pitcher · stock

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. hand — help
  3. can — a tin
  4. wax — to grow
  5. spring — a coil
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. branch — a division
  9. hand — in cards
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. stock — shares
  12. present — there
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. stock — goods
  18. spring — the season
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. can — a tin
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. spring — of water
  24. stock — a soup base

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