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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. track — a song
  3. land — ground
  4. land — a country
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. bound — tied together
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. pop — to visit
  9. stem — to come from
  10. tube — a container
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. track — to keep track
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bound — obliged
  15. tube — the underground
  16. bound — certain
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. track — a path
  19. cold — an illness
  20. pop — music
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pop — soda
  24. stem — of a plant

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