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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wind — moving air
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — the season
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. clip — to cut
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. chest — a box
  11. key — in music
  12. spring — of water
  13. clip — a video
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. wax — to grow
  16. clip — for paper
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — the most important part
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. spring — a coil
  24. wind — to turn a key

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