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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. craft — boats
  4. field — farmland
  5. tube — a container
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. can — a tin
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. field — a subject
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. kick — in football
  14. can — to be able to
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. craft — a skill
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. cold — not warm
  22. field — for sport
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. can — a tin

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