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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. clip — a video
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. net — after costs
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. clip — to cut
  9. file — a document
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. chest — of your body
  12. net — in sport
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. file — a line of people
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. plane — a tool
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. chest — a box
  22. net — for catching
  23. fork — in a road
  24. chest — of your body

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