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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — to cut
  3. pit — in a race
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. pit — a hole
  8. clip — a video
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. can — to be able to
  11. march — the month
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. stock — shares
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — in football
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. bat — the animal
  23. stock — goods
  24. straw — dry grass

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