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: branch · chest · can · straw · spring · mate · march · cell

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cell — in biology
  4. mate — a friend
  5. spring — of water
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. chest — of your body
  8. spring — the season
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — a tin
  13. mate — to breed
  14. branch — a division
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. chest — a box
  18. can — to be able to
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. march — the month
  24. mate — a partner

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