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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bank — of a river
  3. bank — for money
  4. game — wild animals
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bank — for money
  9. field — a subject
  10. staff — a stick
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — employees
  14. field — for sport
  15. shower — rain
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. shower — to wash
  18. field — farmland
  19. game — a match
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. wake — a trail
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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