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: tube · straw · bore · land · saw · bound · hand · coach

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bore — to drill
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bound — certain
  10. land — a country
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bound — tied together
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. saw — the tool
  15. hand — in cards
  16. land — to come down
  17. bound — obliged
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. tube — the underground
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. hand — help
  23. saw — the tool
  24. tube — a container

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