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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bulb — for light
  3. ball — a great time
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cue — a hint
  6. last — finally
  7. ball — a dance
  8. wound — an injury
  9. press — to push
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. tube — a container
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. last — final
  15. bulb — for light
  16. cue — for pool
  17. wound — an injury
  18. tube — the underground
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. last — to go on
  22. press — a publisher
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. chest — a box

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