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: chest · clip · racket · pitcher · season · degree · wake · temple

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. chest — a box
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. chest — of your body
  8. season — in sport
  9. degree — temperature
  10. clip — a video
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. clip — for paper
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wake — a trail
  17. season — of the year
  18. degree — from a university
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. chest — of your body
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. racket — for tennis

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