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: file · capital · fall · branch · safe · race · hand · trunk

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. file — a tool
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. fall — the season
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. hand — help
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — money
  14. race — a contest
  15. file — a document
  16. branch — a division
  17. hand — in cards
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. race — humankind
  20. fall — to drop
  21. race — the arms race
  22. file — a line of people
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. safe — a strongbox

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