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: bark · tube · content · cold · jam · wind · squash · deal

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. tube — a container
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. cold — not warm
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. content — the amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. deal — to handle
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. tube — the underground
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. content — happy
  16. bark — to shout
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. squash — the sport
  22. cold — an illness
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. deal — an agreement

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