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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. file — a document
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. drill — army training
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. drill — a practice
  9. deal — to handle
  10. file — a tool
  11. stock — goods
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. stock — shares
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. bat — the animal
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. rash — hasty
  19. file — a line of people
  20. drill — the tool
  21. rash — a series
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. wax — for sculpting

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