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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bass — the fish
  4. pop — soda
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bass — low music
  9. pop — music
  10. clip — a video
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. row — to paddle
  14. row — a line
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pass — a permit

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