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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. lean — to bend
  6. clip — to cut
  7. degree — temperature
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. degree — from a university
  10. clip — a video
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. ball — a dance
  14. clip — for paper
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. ball — a great time
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. degree — an amount

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