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 120 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. ground — a position
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. clip — to cut
  9. fall — to drop
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. mug — to rob
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. row — a line
  14. ground — crushed
  15. clip — for paper
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fall — the season
  18. clip — a video
  19. mug — a cup
  20. row — to paddle
  21. fall — to drop
  22. ground — the earth
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — a tool

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