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: march · clip · cell · stem · hide · lash

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. march — the month
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cell — a phone
  9. clip — for paper
  10. march — the month
  11. clip — a video
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. march — music
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. cell — in biology
  18. lash — a whip stroke

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