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 116 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. clip — for paper
  3. spell — magic
  4. clip — a video
  5. root — of a word
  6. snap — to click
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. spell — letters
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. root — of a plant
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. key — the most important part
  17. root — the cause
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. key — in music
  20. key — for a lock
  21. clip — to cut
  22. spell — a short time
  23. branch — a division
  24. nail — for a hammer

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