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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. spring — of water
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. tube — a container
  12. mate — a friend
  13. mate — to breed
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — the season
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bass — the fish
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bass — low music

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