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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. can — a tin
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. clip — for paper
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bark — to shout
  8. cold — not warm
  9. wake — a trail
  10. object — to protest
  11. can — a tin
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. charge — a price
  14. object — a thing
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. charge — electricity
  20. clip — a video
  21. object — an aim
  22. charge — in control
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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