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: stem · wound · clip · row · staff · rule · face · pop

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. pop — soda
  3. staff — employees
  4. pop — music
  5. rule — a law
  6. row — to paddle
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. clip — a video
  10. wound — an injury
  11. clip — to cut
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. wound — an injury
  15. staff — a stick
  16. face — to point toward
  17. row — a line
  18. staff — employees
  19. rule — government
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pop — to visit
  23. stem — to come from
  24. clip — for paper

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