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 120 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. scale — in music
  4. file — a tool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. spring — the season
  9. current — of water
  10. tube — the underground
  11. fork — in a road
  12. spring — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. file — a document
  16. current — happening now
  17. court — of law
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. file — a line of people
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. spring — a coil
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — for 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