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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. press — to push
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. pitch — completely
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bear — the animal
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. press — newspapers
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bear — the animal
  24. press — a publisher

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