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: patient · clip · straw · kid · last · mine · temple · bound

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. kid — to tease
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bound — obliged
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. clip — a video
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kid — child
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bound — certain
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. bound — tied together
  18. clip — for paper
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. last — to go on
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. last — final

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