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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. rush — hurry
  3. stock — shares
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bass — the fish
  8. fall — to drop
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ball — a great time
  11. clip — a video
  12. bass — low music
  13. game — a match
  14. press — to push
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. stock — goods
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. press — newspapers
  19. fall — to drop
  20. ball — a dance
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. game — wild animals
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. fall — the season

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