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 120 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. tube — a container
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. chip — for betting
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. chest — a box
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. ball — a great time
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. tube — the underground

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