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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. last — final
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. game — a match
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. last — finally
  10. tube — the underground
  11. last — to go on
  12. tube — a container
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. game — wild animals
  18. prune — to trim
  19. race — humankind
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. prune — to trim
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — a contest
  24. prune — the fruit

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