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: wind · snap · bat · bear · kid · clip · arm · mug

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bear — the animal
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. kid — to tease
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bat — the animal
  11. clip — for paper
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — a face
  17. kid — child
  18. bear — the animal
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. clip — a video
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. clip — to cut
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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