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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. rock — music
  3. fine — all right
  4. clip — for paper
  5. deal — to handle
  6. chair — a leader
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. band — a ring
  10. clip — a video
  11. wax — to grow
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. mine — for digging
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. band — a music group
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. rock — a stone

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