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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. tube — a container
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. face — to confront
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bore — to drill
  7. file — a document
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bore — to tire
  12. face — part of the head
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. file — a line of people
  15. rule — government
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. kick — in football
  18. tube — the underground
  19. rule — a law
  20. cell — a phone
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. file — a tool

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