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: cold · stock · patient · wave · cap · pop · vault · clip

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. vault — a safe
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. clip — a video
  12. pop — to visit
  13. cold — not warm
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a lid
  18. clip — for paper
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. stock — shares
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pop — music
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. pop — soda

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