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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. spell — a short time
  8. land — ground
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. degree — an amount
  11. kick — in football
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. degree — temperature
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spell — magic
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — rain
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. dip — to sink
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. spell — letters

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