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 · cell · temple · jam · row · bat · stem · hand

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. row — a line
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. row — to paddle
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. bat — the animal
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. cell — in biology
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. hand — help
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — a container
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. stem — to come from
  18. cell — a phone
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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