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: saw · rock · ground · mate · game · clip · fan · wake

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. mate — a friend
  3. ground — crushed
  4. game — a match
  5. rock — a stone
  6. wake — a trail
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. ground — the earth
  12. mate — to breed
  13. rock — music
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. clip — a video
  17. ground — a position
  18. clip — to cut
  19. saw — the tool
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. game — wild animals
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. rock — to move gently

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