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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mug — to rob
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. spring — the season
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — the underground
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mug — a face
  13. chest — a box
  14. roll — a list
  15. spring — of water
  16. tube — a container
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. roll — a cake
  24. mug — a cup

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