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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spring — a coil
  3. clip — to cut
  4. board — to get on
  5. stand — to bear
  6. last — final
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. last — finally
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. board — a committee
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — hasty
  14. last — to go on
  15. stem — to come from
  16. spring — of water
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. clip — for paper
  20. wind — moving air
  21. spring — the season
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. clip — a video

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