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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. pitch — completely
  3. wound — an injury
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rock — music
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. tube — the underground
  9. wound — an injury
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. land — a country
  13. bulb — for light
  14. land — ground
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. tube — a container
  17. net — after costs
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. land — to come down
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. net — for catching
  23. rock — a stone
  24. net — in sport

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