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: ground · cap · tube · ball · tear · mug · nail · cold

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. tear — from crying
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — to rob
  9. ball — a great time
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ball — a dance
  14. tear — to rip
  15. mug — a cup
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. ground — a position
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cold — an illness
  22. tube — a container
  23. tube — the underground
  24. nail — for a hammer

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