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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a skill
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. current — electric
  7. game — a match
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. current — of water
  11. game — wild animals
  12. current — happening now
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — obliged
  21. dip — to sink
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cold — not warm

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