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: date · rest · clip · swing · shower · rash · pound · chest

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. clip — a video
  3. swing — music
  4. clip — to cut
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. rest — a break
  8. date — the fruit
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rest — what's left
  13. chest — a box
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. shower — to wash
  16. chest — of your body
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rash — a series
  19. shower — rain
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. swing — in golf
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. swing — to play on
  24. date — on the calendar

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