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 120 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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. present — a gift
  5. ground — crushed
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. wind — moving air
  8. file — a tool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. ground — a position
  12. suit — clothes
  13. fork — in a road
  14. wax — to grow
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. file — a line of people
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. present — the time now
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. suit — in cards
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. present — there
  23. file — a document
  24. ground — the earth

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