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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. current — of water
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. field — for sport
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. field — a subject
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bass — low music
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. field — farmland
  17. current — happening now
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. band — a music group
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. bass — the fish
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. rash — a series
  24. current — electric

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