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 120 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. scale — in music
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. wax — to grow
  7. chip — to eat
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. fork — in a road
  12. clip — a video
  13. scale — size or range
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. row — a line
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. clip — for paper
  19. chip — for betting
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rash — hasty
  24. chip — in a computer

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