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: club · wind · leaves · present · sharp · net · clip · calf

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. club — for dancing
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. wind — moving air
  8. present — the time now
  9. clip — to cut
  10. present — there
  11. sharp — clever
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — in sport
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. club — for golf
  18. present — a gift
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. clip — for paper
  21. club — a group
  22. clip — a video
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. net — after costs

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