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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cue — a signal
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — goods
  6. file — a document
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. land — to come down
  9. court — of law
  10. court — for sport
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wax — to grow
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. cue — for pool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. cue — a hint
  18. court — of a king
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. file — a tool
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. stock — shares

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