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: wound · fall · jam · spell · ground · toast · wave · clip

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wound — an injury
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. spell — magic
  10. clip — a video
  11. toast — bread
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. ground — a position
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. ground — the earth
  16. fall — the season
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. clip — to cut
  19. spell — letters
  20. fall — to drop
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wound — an injury
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. wave — of the sea

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