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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. clip — to cut
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kid — child
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. face — to confront
  12. bore — to tire
  13. face — part of the head
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wind — moving air
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. craft — a skill
  19. wind — moving air
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. kid — to tease
  24. face — to point toward

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