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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. wind — moving air
  5. current — happening now
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. track — a song
  8. current — electric
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. hand — help
  13. track — a path
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. hand — in cards
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. track — to keep track
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. rush — hurry
  21. wind — moving air
  22. current — of water
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. clip — a video

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