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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. cold — not warm
  4. branch — a division
  5. tube — the underground
  6. present — a gift
  7. content — happy
  8. kick — in football
  9. content — the amount
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to tire
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. present — there
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. cap — of ice
  18. present — the time now
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. cap — a hat
  22. tube — a container
  23. cold — an illness
  24. kick — with a leg

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