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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. clip — a video
  6. spring — the season
  7. bear — the animal
  8. march — music
  9. spring — of water
  10. land — ground
  11. clip — to cut
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. scale — in music
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bear — the animal
  17. chair — a leader
  18. march — the month
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. spring — a coil
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. land — a country
  23. march — the month
  24. bear — to put up with

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