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: land · clip · fork · lash · wind · swing · safe · arm

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. land — a country
  4. land — ground
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. swing — to play on
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. land — to come down
  13. clip — for paper
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. clip — a video
  16. fork — in a road
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wind — moving air
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. swing — in golf
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. swing — music
  24. clip — to cut

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