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: bat · arm · firm · clip · can · scale · craft · kid

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. clip — for paper
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. craft — a skill
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. can — a tin
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. craft — boats
  12. kid — child
  13. can — a tin
  14. clip — to cut
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. firm — a company
  20. clip — a video
  21. firm — decided
  22. can — to be able to
  23. bat — the animal
  24. kid — to tease

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