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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. pop — music
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bound — tied together
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. face — part of the head
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. branch — a division
  11. pop — soda
  12. bound — obliged
  13. face — to point toward
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. bound — certain
  17. drill — army training
  18. pop — to visit
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. face — to confront
  21. drill — the tool
  22. bat — the animal
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bat — for baseball

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