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: tube · last · kid · lash · band · rest · bat · court

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. band — a ring
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bat — the animal
  8. rest — what's left
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. band — a music group
  14. court — of law
  15. rest — a break
  16. kid — child
  17. tube — the underground
  18. rest — what's left
  19. court — of a king
  20. last — final
  21. court — for sport
  22. tube — a container
  23. last — finally
  24. bat — for baseball

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