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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. degree — from a university
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. row — to paddle
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. degree — an amount
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — not warm
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. row — a line
  18. wave — with your hand

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