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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. mark — a trace
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. cold — an illness
  8. row — a line
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. field — farmland
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — to breed
  15. bore — to tire
  16. mark — a grade
  17. tube — a container
  18. field — for sport
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mate — a partner
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. field — a subject

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