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: bank · branch · pit · fine · kid · race · scale · cold

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. cold — not warm
  6. fine — all right
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. scale — size or range
  10. race — humankind
  11. bank — for money
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. pit — a hole
  15. race — a contest
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bank — for money
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bank — of a river
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pit — in a race
  24. scale — in music

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