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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. clip — a video
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. clip — for paper
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. last — finally
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. last — final
  12. clip — to cut
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. last — to go on
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. bat — the animal
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. shower — rain

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