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

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — the season
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — a video
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. date — the fruit
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bat — the animal
  17. spring — of water
  18. fan — a supporter

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