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 120 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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. land — a country
  3. present — there
  4. fall — the season
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. hand — in cards
  7. race — humankind
  8. clip — for paper
  9. race — the arms race
  10. race — a contest
  11. land — ground
  12. ground — the earth
  13. clip — a video
  14. ground — crushed
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. hand — help
  17. ground — a position
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — the time now
  20. land — to come down
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — to drop
  24. clip — to cut

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