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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. squash — the sport
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. object — to protest
  6. wind — moving air
  7. squash — to crush
  8. mine — for digging
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pit — a hole
  13. clip — a video
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — a thing
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. trunk — of a tree

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