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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. season — in sport
  7. scale — in music
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. deal — to handle
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. clip — a video
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. scale — size or range
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. mine — for digging
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. deal — an agreement

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