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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. key — in music
  3. fall — to drop
  4. race — the arms race
  5. band — a ring
  6. shower — to wash
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. clip — a video
  9. key — the most important part
  10. ground — a position
  11. shower — rain
  12. race — humankind
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. clip — for paper
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. ground — the earth
  17. key — for a lock
  18. fall — to drop
  19. band — a music group
  20. plane — a tool
  21. race — a contest
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. clip — to cut
  24. fall — the season

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