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 120 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: cold · bowl · hand · file · chair · bear · bass · clip

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bass — the fish
  6. clip — a video
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bass — low music
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. hand — help
  20. clip — to cut
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. hand — in cards
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — a professorship

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