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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. net — after costs
  3. cold — not warm
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. foot — a measure
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. dip — to sink
  12. capital — money
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. net — in sport
  15. tube — a container
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. net — for catching
  21. capital — a city
  22. mine — for digging
  23. tube — the underground
  24. cold — the Cold War

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