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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. net — after costs
  3. cap — a hat
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. net — in sport
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — of ice
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. spring — the season
  13. net — for catching
  14. deal — to handle
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. hand — help
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. hand — in cards
  24. tube — in a tire

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