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: patient · trunk · mouse · pop · bay · clip · perch · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. clip — to cut
  5. perch — the fish
  6. clip — for paper
  7. pop — soda
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. pop — music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pop — to visit
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. clip — a video
  24. patient — a sick person

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