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: wind · lash · present · rule · clip · march · snap · rush

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rule — government
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. snap — to click
  5. march — the month
  6. rush — hurry
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. present — there
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. present — a gift
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rule — a law
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. clip — a video
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. present — the time now
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. clip — to cut
  24. rule — to rule out

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