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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wax — to grow
  3. staff — employees
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. cold — an illness
  6. staff — a stick
  7. saw — the tool
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. saw — the tool
  10. cold — not warm
  11. drill — the tool
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cue — for pool
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. field — farmland
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. field — for sport
  18. cue — a hint
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. drill — army training
  22. field — a subject
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. cue — a signal

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