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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. kick — in football
  4. kid — child
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. spring — a coil
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. spring — the season
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. hand — in cards
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. deal — to handle
  14. clip — a video
  15. court — of law
  16. court — for sport
  17. hand — help
  18. clip — for paper
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. spring — of water
  21. court — of a king
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. kid — to tease
  24. wind — moving air

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