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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. march — music
  7. row — a line
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. saw — the tool
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. wax — to grow
  18. row — to paddle
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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