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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. mine — for digging
  3. last — final
  4. wax — to grow
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. ball — a dance
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. swing — in golf
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. ground — a position
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. last — to go on
  13. swing — to play on
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — the earth
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. last — finally
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. ball — a great time
  23. fork — in a road
  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