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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. content — happy
  3. squash — to crush
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. squash — the sport
  6. chip — for betting
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. chip — to eat
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. degree — from a university
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. tube — the underground
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. degree — an amount
  22. tube — a container
  23. degree — temperature
  24. content — the amount

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