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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. present — a gift
  3. face — part of the head
  4. tube — the underground
  5. ball — a dance
  6. ball — a great time
  7. chest — of your body
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stand — to bear
  11. face — to confront
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. tube — a container
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. chest — a box
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. cold — not warm
  18. chest — of your body
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. present — the time now
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. present — there
  24. stand — for spectators

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