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 · trunk · arm · straw · wave · stand · net · wind

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wind — moving air
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. stand — to bear
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — after costs
  12. clip — for paper
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. clip — a video
  20. wind — moving air
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. clip — to cut
  23. net — in sport
  24. wave — of the sea

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