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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bass — the fish
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — a short time
  12. bass — low music
  13. spell — letters
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bark — to shout
  16. clip — for paper
  17. content — the amount
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. content — happy
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. clip — a video
  24. content — videos and posts

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