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 120 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. key — in music
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. sharp — clever
  10. tear — to rip
  11. mark — a grade
  12. key — the most important part
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chest — a box
  17. wax — to grow
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. field — for sport
  20. chest — of your body
  21. field — a subject
  22. mark — a trace
  23. key — for a lock
  24. field — farmland

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