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: tear · bulb · season · degree · saw · clip · rash · cap

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. saw — the tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cap — a hat
  11. bulb — for light
  12. clip — a video
  13. saw — the tool
  14. clip — for paper
  15. rash — a series
  16. degree — temperature
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. season — of the year
  19. rash — hasty
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. season — in sport

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