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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. march — the month
  6. pit — in a race
  7. clip — a video
  8. march — the month
  9. land — to come down
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. clip — to cut
  12. squash — to crush
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wound — an injury
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. march — music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pit — a hole
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wound — an injury
  23. squash — the sport
  24. land — ground

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