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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. content — the amount
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. content — happy
  10. cold — an illness
  11. file — a tool
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. file — a line of people
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. clip — to cut
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. clip — a video
  19. wax — to grow
  20. cold — not warm
  21. lie — to recline
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. file — a document

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