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: clip · lie · ball · sharp · lash · track · perch · shower

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. shower — to wash
  3. clip — to cut
  4. ball — a dance
  5. shower — rain
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. clip — for paper
  8. ball — a great time
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. track — a path
  15. clip — a video
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. track — a song
  20. track — to keep track
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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