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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. drill — army training
  4. craft — boats
  5. band — a music group
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. band — a ring
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bat — the animal
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. craft — a skill
  22. drill — the tool
  23. chair — a leader
  24. drill — a practice

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