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 120 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. shower — rain
  4. clip — a video
  5. face — part of the head
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. face — to point toward
  8. track — to keep track
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. dip — to sink
  11. chip — to eat
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. clip — to cut
  18. mine — for digging
  19. clip — for paper
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chip — for betting
  24. nail — for a hammer

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