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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. ground — crushed
  4. race — humankind
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. lean — thin
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — a contest
  10. clip — for paper
  11. snap — to click
  12. clip — a video
  13. race — the arms race
  14. perch — the fish
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — to bend
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. ground — the earth
  22. plane — a tool
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. ground — a position

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