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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · lean · content · chest · bark · tube · file · pit

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. file — a tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. pit — a hole
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. kid — child
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — a container
  15. lean — thin
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. lean — to bend
  24. content — happy

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