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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. kick — in football
  3. tube — the underground
  4. net — after costs
  5. perch — the fish
  6. tube — a container
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rule — government
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — a law
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mug — a cup
  15. ground — crushed
  16. mug — a face
  17. bat — the animal
  18. net — for catching
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. net — in sport
  21. ground — a position
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. ground — the earth

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