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: tube · sharp · arm · foot · cell · spring · bear · cold

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bear — the animal
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cell — in biology
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. spring — of water
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. tube — a container
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. tube — the underground
  16. spring — a coil
  17. cold — not warm
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. cold — an illness
  20. sharp — clever
  21. cell — a phone
  22. spring — the season
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. foot — a measure

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