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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  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. clip — a video
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. lie — to recline
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bear — the animal
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. degree — temperature
  12. tear — from crying
  13. degree — an amount
  14. swing — in golf
  15. bat — the animal
  16. tear — to rip
  17. band — a music group
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bear — the animal
  21. band — a ring
  22. swing — music
  23. tear — from crying
  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