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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. staff — a stick
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. mine — for digging
  5. wax — to grow
  6. craft — boats
  7. club — a group
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. staff — employees
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. hand — in cards
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — for dancing
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. staff — employees
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. date — the fruit
  23. craft — a skill
  24. wax — in the ear

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