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: cabinet · bank · chest · clip · march · rush · spell · wax

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. march — the month
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bank — for money
  8. spell — a short time
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wax — to grow
  11. march — the month
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. clip — to cut
  15. spell — letters
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. chest — of your body
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. spell — magic
  21. chest — a box
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  24. march — music

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