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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. race — a contest
  4. rush — hurry
  5. lean — thin
  6. drill — army training
  7. net — in sport
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. race — the arms race
  10. wax — to grow
  11. lean — to bend
  12. net — after costs
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. net — for catching
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. race — humankind
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — a practice

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