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 116 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cold — an illness
  4. season — in sport
  5. band — a music group
  6. object — an aim
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. band — a ring
  9. object — a thing
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. clip — for paper
  12. object — to protest
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. cold — not warm
  16. clip — a video
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. season — of the year

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