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 120 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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cap — a hat
  4. clip — for paper
  5. mate — to breed
  6. hand — in cards
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. hand — help
  12. mate — a friend
  13. clip — a video
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. mate — a partner
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cap — of ice
  21. rest — what's left
  22. ball — a great time
  23. rest — what's left
  24. ball — a dance

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