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

Word bank: race · spell · clip · tear · foot · cell · tube · track

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. cell — in biology
  6. spell — magic
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. spell — letters
  9. tear — to rip
  10. race — the arms race
  11. track — a song
  12. race — a contest
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. tear — from crying
  15. foot — a measure
  16. clip — a video
  17. tube — the underground
  18. cell — a phone
  19. spell — a short time
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a path
  22. race — humankind
  23. tube — a container
  24. tear — from crying

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