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 120 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. clip — to cut
  4. kid — child
  5. march — music
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. kid — to tease
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. shower — to wash
  15. march — the month
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. clip — a video
  18. shower — rain
  19. march — the month
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  24. 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