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: snap · cold · perch · lean · pass · leaves · saw · clip

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. snap — to click
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — thin
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. clip — to cut
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. lean — to bend
  9. saw — the tool
  10. clip — a video
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. cold — an illness
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cold — not warm
  19. perch — the fish
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. saw — the tool

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