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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. spring — a coil
  4. march — the month
  5. tear — from crying
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. spring — of water
  10. clip — to cut
  11. season — in sport
  12. season — of the year
  13. tear — to rip
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. spring — the season
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a document
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. march — music
  22. march — the month
  23. file — a tool
  24. clip — a video

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