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: clip · prune · date · wound · fall · wind

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. wound — an injury
  3. date — the fruit
  4. wind — moving air
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fall — to drop
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. clip — for paper
  9. fall — to drop
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wound — an injury
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. fall — the season
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. prune — the fruit

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