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. The water is too ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mine — for digging
  3. band — a ring
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. saw — the tool
  8. band — a music group
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. prune — to trim
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. cold — an illness
  21. saw — the tool
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. band — a rubber band

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