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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. spring — of water
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. track — to keep track
  11. spring — a coil
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. spring — the season
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. court — of a king
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. court — for sport
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bat — the animal
  21. court — of law
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. deal — to handle
  24. track — a song

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