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: racket · tear · wound · chest · last · tube · charge · prune

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. charge — electricity
  4. wound — an injury
  5. prune — to trim
  6. tear — from crying
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — a box
  9. tube — the underground
  10. last — to go on
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. chest — of your body
  15. tear — from crying
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. charge — a price
  18. charge — in control
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. last — finally
  22. last — final
  23. tube — a container
  24. chest — of your body

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