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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. deal — to handle
  3. fork — in a road
  4. clip — for paper
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. pound — a weight
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. tear — to rip
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. fall — to drop
  13. clip — a video
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fall — the season
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. clip — to cut
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. tear — from crying
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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