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: date · shower · track · lean · chip · game · roll · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. shower — rain
  3. track — a song
  4. lean — thin
  5. chip — to eat
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. clip — a video
  8. lean — to bend
  9. roll — a cake
  10. game — a match
  11. track — to keep track
  12. date — the fruit
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. chip — for betting
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. roll — a list
  19. game — wild animals
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. shower — to wash
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. track — a path
  24. clip — for paper

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