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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. tube — the underground
  4. ground — a position
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. roll — a cake
  9. rash — a series
  10. face — to confront
  11. tube — a container
  12. face — to point toward
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. rash — hasty
  17. face — part of the head
  18. ground — crushed
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. ground — the earth
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. roll — a list
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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