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: bear · jam · saw · wound · mine · clip · wind · dip

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bear — the animal
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mine — for digging
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. bear — the animal
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wind — moving air
  16. clip — to cut
  17. wound — an injury
  18. saw — the tool
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. saw — the tool
  24. wind — to turn a key

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