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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. wax — to grow
  3. band — a music group
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. file — a line of people
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mate — to breed
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mate — a friend
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. degree — from a university
  18. file — a document
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. sharp — clever
  22. band — a ring
  23. file — a tool
  24. band — a rubber band

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