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 · last · rule · clip · mug · game · mine · wake

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. game — a match
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. mug — a cup
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wake — a trail
  7. clip — to cut
  8. last — final
  9. rule — government
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. rule — a law
  12. mug — a face
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. last — to go on
  15. clip — a video
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. last — finally
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. clip — for paper
  22. mine — for digging
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. mug — to rob

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