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 116 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 always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. fall — to drop
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. track — a song
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — a series
  10. spring — the season
  11. track — a path
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. charge — in control
  14. fall — to drop
  15. charge — a price
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bat — the animal
  18. fall — the season
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. spring — a coil
  21. track — to keep track
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spring — of water
  24. charge — electricity

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