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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. club — a group
  3. degree — from a university
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. chest — of your body
  6. club — for golf
  7. date — the fruit
  8. craft — a skill
  9. chest — a box
  10. wake — a trail
  11. cap — of ice
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. cap — a hat
  14. craft — boats
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cap — a lid
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. degree — an amount
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. tube — a container
  23. degree — temperature
  24. club — for dancing

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