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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. bass — low music
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. bulb — for light
  8. squash — to crush
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bass — the fish
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. squash — the sport
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bulb — for light
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wind — moving air
  24. spell — magic

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