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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a song
  4. mug — to rob
  5. wind — moving air
  6. can — to be able to
  7. court — of a king
  8. mug — a cup
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. court — of law
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — a tin
  15. wax — to grow
  16. shower — to wash
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. mug — a face
  22. mine — for digging
  23. shower — rain
  24. court — for sport

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