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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fall — to drop
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. degree — from a university
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. file — a line of people
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. clip — a video
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. chip — to eat
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. degree — an amount
  20. clip — for paper
  21. fall — the season
  22. clip — to cut
  23. chip — for betting
  24. fall — to drop

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