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: straw · mug · march · ground · hand · clip · lash · prune

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — a position
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. mug — a face
  9. hand — in cards
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. hand — help
  13. mug — to rob
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mug — a cup
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. march — the month
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. ground — crushed
  22. clip — for paper
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. straw — dry grass

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