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

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. prune — to trim
  3. court — for sport
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. wax — to grow
  8. pitch — completely
  9. last — to go on
  10. prune — to trim
  11. ground — crushed
  12. last — final
  13. ground — the earth
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wind — moving air
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — of law
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ground — a position
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. last — finally

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