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: spell · nail · bat · pound · clip · charge · trunk · pitcher

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. charge — electricity
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. charge — in control
  5. charge — a price
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bat — the animal
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. spell — letters
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. spell — a short time
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. clip — for paper
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. spell — magic
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. nail — for a hammer

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