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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. clip — a video
  5. tear — from crying
  6. key — the most important part
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. chest — of your body
  10. march — the month
  11. chest — a box
  12. march — music
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. pound — a weight
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. tear — to rip
  20. march — the month
  21. key — in music
  22. chest — of your body
  23. clip — to cut
  24. cabinet — ministers

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