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 · mate · cabinet · cap · cell · snap · march · clip

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. march — the month
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. cap — a hat
  8. ball — a dance
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. march — the month
  14. mate — a friend
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. snap — to click
  17. cap — of ice
  18. ball — a great time
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. clip — a video
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — music
  24. mate — a partner

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