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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. rest — what's left
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wound — an injury
  5. tube — a container
  6. bat — the animal
  7. rest — a break
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. rest — what's left
  15. tube — the underground
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. wound — an injury
  20. deal — to handle
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. bat — in an idiom

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