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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. field — for sport
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. press — to push
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. press — a publisher
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — a series
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. field — a subject
  20. rash — hasty
  21. field — farmland
  22. press — newspapers
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. calf — a young animal

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