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: bowl · kick · jam · mine · saw · squash · clip · file

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. clip — a video
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. squash — to crush
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. clip — for paper
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. file — a tool
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. squash — the sport
  18. clip — to cut
  19. saw — the tool
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. mine — for digging
  24. kick — in football

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