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 116 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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. fall — the season
  5. plane — a tool
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — for light
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. tube — a container
  16. sharp — clever
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. craft — a skill
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. tube — the underground
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. chair — a leader

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