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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. clip — to cut
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. clip — a video
  7. bark — to shout
  8. last — finally
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. court — of law
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. last — to go on
  16. court — for sport
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. last — final
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. court — of a king
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. pitcher — a jug

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