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 · hide · straw · ball · rest · field · cap · arm

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  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. cap — a lid
  2. tube — the underground
  3. ball — a dance
  4. cap — a hat
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cap — of ice
  12. tube — a container
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. field — farmland
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — what's left
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. ball — a great time
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. rest — a break
  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