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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. spring — a coil
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. spring — of water
  6. last — final
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. object — an aim
  9. spring — the season
  10. object — to protest
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. last — finally
  14. clip — for paper
  15. clip — to cut
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. clip — a video
  18. chest — of your body
  19. last — to go on
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. object — a thing
  23. chest — a box
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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