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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. game — wild animals
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. game — a match
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. degree — an amount
  13. perch — the fish
  14. wax — to grow
  15. foot — a measure
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. shower — rain
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. degree — from a university
  23. shower — to wash
  24. game — a kind of play

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