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: wound · clip · club · leaves · tear · race

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. race — the arms race
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for dancing
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. tear — from crying
  9. clip — a video
  10. race — humankind
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. race — a contest
  14. clip — for paper
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. wound — an injury
  17. club — for golf
  18. leaves — to go away

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