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: clip · arm · land · prune · jam · cabinet · tube · sharp

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. tube — a container
  3. prune — to trim
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. sharp — clever
  6. clip — for paper
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. clip — to cut
  9. land — a country
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. clip — a video
  12. tube — the underground
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. prune — to trim
  18. land — to come down
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. land — ground

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