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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. tear — from crying
  4. swing — music
  5. clip — to cut
  6. chip — for betting
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. rule — a law
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. clip — a video
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bore — to drill
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. swing — to play on
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. chip — to eat
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. season — of the year
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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