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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. can — a tin
  6. clip — a video
  7. can — to be able to
  8. roll — a list
  9. squash — the sport
  10. land — a country
  11. squash — to crush
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. spring — the season
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. roll — a cake
  22. can — a tin
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. clip — for paper

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