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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. tear — to rip
  7. lean — thin
  8. field — for sport
  9. row — to paddle
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. tear — from crying
  13. row — a line
  14. season — of the year
  15. stem — to come from
  16. field — a subject
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. field — farmland
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. tear — from crying
  21. season — in sport
  22. lean — to bend
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. clip — to cut

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