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: race · patient · ball · shower · cold · foot · clip · craft

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. ball — a dance
  7. foot — a measure
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. craft — boats
  10. craft — a skill
  11. clip — for paper
  12. shower — rain
  13. ball — a great time
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. cold — an illness
  16. race — humankind
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. race — the arms race
  20. clip — a video
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. race — a contest
  23. cold — not warm
  24. shower — to wash

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