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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. march — the month
  3. tube — a container
  4. pound — a weight
  5. wind — moving air
  6. fork — in a road
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. tube — the underground
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. march — music
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. march — the month
  17. clip — a video
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. row — to paddle
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. row — a line

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