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 124 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. file — a line of people
  6. face — to confront
  7. bass — the fish
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. bore — to drill
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. bore — to tire
  12. face — part of the head
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a tool
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. clip — a video
  18. bass — low music
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. clip — to cut
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. face — to point toward
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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