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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. ball — a great time
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. ball — a dance
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. land — a country
  11. scale — in music
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. plane — a tool
  20. wax — to grow
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. ball — a round shape

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