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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. stem — to come from
  4. race — a contest
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. face — to point toward
  8. shower — to wash
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. face — part of the head
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. shower — rain
  14. field — for sport
  15. wax — to grow
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. race — the arms race
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. face — to confront
  20. race — humankind
  21. wake — a trail
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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