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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. fall — to drop
  3. clip — for paper
  4. drill — the tool
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. clip — to cut
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — to crush
  9. fall — the season
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. clip — a video
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bound — certain
  14. squash — the sport
  15. drill — army training
  16. bound — obliged
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. drill — a practice
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bound — tied together
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. rash — a series
  24. hide — to keep secret

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