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: cold · swing · board · clip · race · fork · object · calf

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  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. swing — in golf
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. board — a committee
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cold — an illness
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. clip — a video
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. object — an aim
  10. race — humankind
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. swing — to play on
  15. race — the arms race
  16. board — to get on
  17. fork — in a road
  18. object — a thing
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. race — a contest
  21. object — to protest
  22. clip — to cut
  23. swing — music
  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