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: chair · bat · fall · tube · mine · row · rest · mug

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. rest — a break
  3. tube — the underground
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. row — to paddle
  6. fall — to drop
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bat — the animal
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. tube — a container
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mug — to rob
  13. row — a line
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mug — a face
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. mug — a cup
  21. rest — what's left
  22. fall — the season
  23. rest — what's left
  24. mine — an explosive

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