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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. current — happening now
  5. board — to get on
  6. season — of the year
  7. board — a committee
  8. cold — an illness
  9. clip — for paper
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. season — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. current — of water
  15. last — finally
  16. cold — not warm
  17. chest — of your body
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. current — electric
  24. cold — the Cold War

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