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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. cold — not warm
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. race — a contest
  7. club — for golf
  8. cold — an illness
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. race — the arms race
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. roll — a cake
  14. club — for dancing
  15. race — humankind
  16. board — to get on
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wax — to grow
  22. roll — a list
  23. club — a group
  24. board — a committee

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