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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. pop — soda
  5. drill — a practice
  6. lie — to recline
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mark — a grade
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — music
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. clip — to cut

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