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: wave · key · arm · tube · mine · spring · branch · cold

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. spring — the season
  6. mine — for digging
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. cold — not warm
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — a coil
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. key — for a lock
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. key — the most important part
  17. cold — an illness
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. tube — a container
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. key — in music
  22. branch — a division
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. arm — part of the body

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