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 works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. tear — from crying
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. tear — from crying
  6. clip — for paper
  7. row — to paddle
  8. tear — to rip
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. row — a line
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. court — of a king
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. court — of law
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. court — for sport
  18. saw — the tool
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — a video
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. plane — a tool

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