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: capital · trunk · branch · wound · prune · content · stem · patient

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. branch — a division
  3. capital — money
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wound — an injury
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. content — the amount
  10. wound — an injury
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stem — to come from
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. content — happy
  21. prune — to trim
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. stem — a stem cell

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