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: current · bank · wound · mark · degree · march · spell · clip

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. bank — of a river
  3. mark — a trace
  4. spell — a short time
  5. degree — temperature
  6. wound — an injury
  7. clip — to cut
  8. degree — from a university
  9. clip — for paper
  10. march — the month
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bank — for money
  14. current — electric
  15. march — music
  16. mark — a grade
  17. current — of water
  18. march — the month
  19. bank — for money
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — magic
  23. wound — an injury
  24. clip — a video

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