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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. fall — to drop
  3. firm — a company
  4. stock — goods
  5. fall — the season
  6. cell — a phone
  7. march — the month
  8. bank — for money
  9. stock — shares
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. bank — of a river
  12. fall — to drop
  13. cell — in biology
  14. clip — a video
  15. march — music
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. march — the month
  19. firm — steady
  20. firm — decided
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. clip — to cut
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bank — for money

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