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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. stem — to come from
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. fall — the season
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. fall — to drop
  15. perch — the fish
  16. scale — in music
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. scale — size or range
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. stem — a stem cell

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