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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. roll — a list
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. clip — for paper
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — completely
  8. object — to protest
  9. mine — for digging
  10. present — the time now
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. roll — a cake
  14. race — humankind
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. clip — a video
  17. race — the arms race
  18. present — a gift
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. object — a thing
  21. present — there
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. object — an aim
  24. clip — to cut

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