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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. last — final
  3. sharp — clever
  4. clip — a video
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chip — for betting
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. stem — to come from
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. clip — for paper
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — to confront
  14. last — to go on
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. clip — to cut
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. face — part of the head
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chip — to eat
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. last — finally
  24. wake — a trail

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