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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. clip — a video
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. court — of law
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pound — a weight
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. court — of a king
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. shower — rain
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. shower — to wash
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. saw — the tool
  23. court — for sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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