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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. rock — music
  3. pound — a weight
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cold — an illness
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. clip — a video
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. rock — a stone
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. hand — in cards
  14. clip — for paper
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. drill — the tool
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. drill — army training
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hand — help

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