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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. capital — money
  5. current — of water
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. tube — the underground
  8. spring — a coil
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rash — hasty
  11. ball — a dance
  12. field — farmland
  13. ball — a great time
  14. capital — a city
  15. current — happening now
  16. field — for sport
  17. tube — a container
  18. spring — of water
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. spring — the season
  23. field — a subject
  24. rash — a series

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