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: lean · degree · rest · present · clip · patient · track · land

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. rest — a break
  4. rest — what's left
  5. land — a country
  6. land — ground
  7. degree — from a university
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rest — what's left
  11. clip — for paper
  12. lean — to bend
  13. present — a gift
  14. lean — thin
  15. present — the time now
  16. track — a song
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. land — to come down
  21. track — a path
  22. track — to keep track
  23. present — there
  24. patient — a sick person

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