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: bowl · clip · plane · cold · trunk · bank · wake · bass

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bank — for money
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. bank — for money
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. cold — not warm
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bass — the fish
  14. plane — a tool
  15. clip — for paper
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. clip — to cut
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bass — low music
  23. clip — a video
  24. bank — of a river

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