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: rash · file · tear · bat · tube · band · mine · plane

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. file — a line of people
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. tube — a container
  5. rash — hasty
  6. plane — a tool
  7. mine — for digging
  8. band — a music group
  9. tube — the underground
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bat — the animal
  13. file — a tool
  14. tear — from crying
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. rash — a series
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. band — a ring
  19. file — a document
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. tear — to rip
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. tube — in a tire

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