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: stock · chair · roll · plane · charge · degree · race · clip

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. stock — shares
  3. degree — temperature
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — the arms race
  6. roll — a cake
  7. degree — from a university
  8. chair — a leader
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. charge — electricity
  13. clip — for paper
  14. plane — a tool
  15. charge — a price
  16. clip — to cut
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. degree — an amount
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. charge — in control
  22. roll — a list
  23. stock — goods
  24. race — humankind

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