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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. foot — a measure
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. saw — the tool
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. pitch — completely
  10. mate — a friend
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mate — a partner
  13. swing — to play on
  14. bass — the fish
  15. clip — a video
  16. swing — in golf
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. mate — to breed
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. swing — music
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bass — the instrument

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