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 116 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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. race — a contest
  4. squash — to crush
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. race — humankind
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. wound — an injury
  15. swing — in golf
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wound — an injury
  19. squash — the sport
  20. swing — music
  21. mine — for digging
  22. tube — a container
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fork — to eat with

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