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: bay · snap · perch · bulb · pitcher · tube · field · cold

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. cold — an illness
  3. field — farmland
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tube — a container
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. snap — to click
  16. bulb — for light
  17. cold — not warm
  18. field — for sport
  19. field — a subject
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bulb — for light
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. tube — the underground

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