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: ball · lash · clip · rule · trunk · march · wound · wax

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wax — to grow
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. clip — for paper
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. clip — a video
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wound — an injury
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. clip — to cut
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. ball — a great time
  19. march — the month
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. rule — a law
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. ball — a dance

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