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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. present — there
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. spell — letters
  8. game — a match
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. present — a gift
  12. game — wild animals
  13. spell — a short time
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spell — magic
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. present — the time now
  18. tube — in a tire

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