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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. current — of water
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — a video
  6. row — a line
  7. clip — for paper
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. root — of a word
  12. row — to paddle
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. kid — child
  15. root — the cause
  16. current — happening now
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. scale — in music
  19. clip — to cut
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kick — in football
  22. current — electric
  23. root — of a plant
  24. scale — size or range

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