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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. club — a group
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. cell — a phone
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — for dancing
  8. clip — for paper
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pop — to visit
  12. drill — a practice
  13. dip — to sink
  14. key — the most important part
  15. clip — a video
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. cell — in biology
  18. clip — to cut
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pop — soda
  23. key — in music
  24. key — for a lock

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