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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. bat — the animal
  5. key — for a lock
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. tube — a container
  8. perch — the fish
  9. board — a committee
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. board — to get on
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. mate — a partner
  18. mate — a friend
  19. net — for catching
  20. mate — to breed
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. key — the most important part
  24. key — in music

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