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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wax — to grow
  3. hand — in cards
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. rest — what's left
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. key — in music
  11. rest — a break
  12. hand — help
  13. face — to confront
  14. key — for a lock
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. face — to point toward
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. land — ground
  20. rest — what's left
  21. key — the most important part
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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