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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mate — a partner
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. clip — a video
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rest — what's left
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. club — a group
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rest — a break
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. clip — to cut
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. mate — to breed
  23. rest — what's left
  24. mate — a friend

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