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 116 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: bass · clip · season · swing · degree · bulb · spell · straw

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. degree — an amount
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bass — low music
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. degree — temperature
  8. spell — letters
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. clip — to cut
  12. spell — magic
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bass — the fish
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bulb — for light
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. degree — from a university
  22. swing — music
  23. clip — a video
  24. bulb — for light

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