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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. content — the amount
  6. bore — to tire
  7. rush — hurry
  8. tube — a container
  9. season — of the year
  10. drill — army training
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bank — for money
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bore — to drill
  15. degree — from a university
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bank — of a river
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bank — for money
  21. season — in sport
  22. degree — temperature
  23. tube — the underground
  24. degree — an amount

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