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: face · present · clip · degree · march · arm · wake · ground

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — the earth
  4. degree — temperature
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. present — there
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. present — a gift
  9. wake — a trail
  10. present — the time now
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. face — to point toward
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. face — to confront
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. degree — from a university
  20. march — music
  21. face — part of the head
  22. degree — an amount
  23. clip — to cut
  24. ground — a position

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