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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. chest — a box
  4. tube — a container
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. clip — a video
  7. deal — to handle
  8. file — a line of people
  9. spring — the season
  10. chest — of your body
  11. tube — the underground
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. date — the fruit
  14. file — a tool
  15. clip — for paper
  16. file — a document
  17. firm — a company
  18. spring — a coil
  19. firm — steady
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. spring — of water
  22. firm — decided
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. chest — of your body

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