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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. perch — the fish
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cell — in biology
  7. clip — for paper
  8. spell — magic
  9. clip — a video
  10. dip — to sink
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. spell — letters
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cell — a phone
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. spell — a short time

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