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 116 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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. march — the month
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. press — to push
  6. stock — shares
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. scale — in music
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. scale — size or range
  12. mine — for digging
  13. snap — to click
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. press — a publisher
  17. pitch — completely
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. press — newspapers
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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