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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. charge — in control
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. clip — for paper
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. hand — in cards
  8. charge — electricity
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. kid — child
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. object — to protest
  13. hand — help
  14. object — a thing
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. object — an aim
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. clip — a video
  21. charge — a price
  22. clip — to cut
  23. prune — to trim
  24. kid — to tease

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