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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. capital — a city
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pop — to visit
  7. present — the time now
  8. shower — rain
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. file — a tool
  12. pop — music
  13. wound — an injury
  14. perch — the fish
  15. file — a document
  16. present — there
  17. wound — an injury
  18. present — a gift
  19. pop — soda
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. shower — to wash
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. capital — money

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