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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. lie — to recline
  3. cold — an illness
  4. spell — a short time
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cell — in biology
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bass — the fish
  10. clip — for paper
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — a line
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. spell — letters
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — low music
  24. spell — magic

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