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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. fall — the season
  4. wax — to grow
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cue — a signal
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bore — to tire
  15. fall — to drop
  16. scale — in music
  17. bore — to drill
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. scale — size or range
  22. cue — for pool
  23. march — the month
  24. cue — a hint

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