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: fork · ground · clip · wax · present · pitch · content · club

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. club — for golf
  3. ground — the earth
  4. present — there
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fork — in a road
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — for dancing
  9. ground — a position
  10. club — a group
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. present — a gift
  17. present — the time now
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pitch — completely
  21. content — happy
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. clip — a video

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