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: field · tear · last · bound · hide · clip · lie · fall

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. field — for sport
  3. bound — obliged
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tear — to rip
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. fall — to drop
  10. clip — for paper
  11. lie — to recline
  12. field — a subject
  13. last — finally
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. field — farmland
  19. bound — certain
  20. clip — to cut
  21. last — final
  22. clip — a video
  23. fall — the season
  24. bound — tied together

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