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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. clip — a video
  5. pass — a permit
  6. field — for sport
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. last — to go on
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. tear — from crying
  11. last — final
  12. ball — a dance
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. field — a subject
  15. ball — a great time
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. tear — from crying
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. clip — to cut
  21. field — farmland
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. last — finally
  24. straw — a straw man

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