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: spell · clip · content · wound · club · mine · arm · can

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. spell — magic
  5. content — the amount
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — for golf
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. can — a tin
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. clip — for paper
  12. spell — letters
  13. wound — an injury
  14. clip — a video
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wound — an injury
  17. can — a tin
  18. club — a group
  19. clip — to cut
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. can — to be able to
  22. mine — for digging
  23. content — happy
  24. mine — an explosive

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