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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. last — final
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. tube — the underground
  6. cue — a hint
  7. drill — the tool
  8. tube — a container
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. last — finally
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. band — a music group
  13. season — in sport
  14. date — the fruit
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. cue — for pool
  17. drill — army training
  18. last — to go on
  19. cue — a signal
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. band — a ring
  22. wax — to grow
  23. drill — a practice
  24. season — of the year

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