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: stem · file · coach · lean · date · wind · drill · clip

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. date — the fruit
  4. clip — to cut
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. file — a tool
  8. lean — to bend
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. lean — thin
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. file — a line of people
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. wind — moving air
  15. clip — a video
  16. drill — army training
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. drill — a practice
  19. wind — moving air
  20. clip — for paper
  21. stem — to come from
  22. drill — the tool
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. file — a document

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