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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. swing — to play on
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. mate — a friend
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. spring — of water
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. track — a song
  10. rash — a series
  11. tube — the underground
  12. track — a path
  13. swing — in golf
  14. spring — the season
  15. track — to keep track
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a partner
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. spring — a coil
  22. swing — music
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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