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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. tube — the underground
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. tube — a container
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. band — a ring
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. prune — to trim
  11. season — in sport
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wake — a trail
  14. season — of the year
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. content — the amount
  17. clip — a video
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. content — happy
  20. prune — to trim
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music group

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