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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. row — to paddle
  5. plane — a tool
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — a series
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. capital — a city
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. capital — money
  14. bark — to shout
  15. row — a line
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. wax — to grow

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