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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chair · clip · deal · race · cell · jam

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. race — the arms race
  4. clip — to cut
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. race — humankind
  11. chair — a leader
  12. clip — for paper
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. clip — a video
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. cell — a phone
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cell — in biology

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