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: trunk · clip · perch · land · bat · stock · nail · wake

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. land — a country
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. clip — to cut
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — shares
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. land — ground
  20. clip — a video
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. land — to come down
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — a soup base

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