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 120 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: drill · land · mark · row · ground · clip · chip · bound

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. bound — certain
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — army training
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. chip — for betting
  8. land — a country
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bound — obliged
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — a position
  13. land — to come down
  14. drill — the tool
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. clip — a video
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. land — ground
  19. row — to paddle
  20. mark — a grade
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ground — the earth
  23. row — a line
  24. bound — tied together

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