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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. clip — a video
  3. bass — the fish
  4. track — a song
  5. spell — a short time
  6. chest — a box
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cap — a lid
  13. spell — letters
  14. cap — a hat
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. spell — magic
  17. track — to keep track
  18. cap — of ice
  19. chest — of your body
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bass — low music
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. track — a path

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