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 124 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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. mine — for digging
  3. race — a contest
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. race — humankind
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bound — obliged
  18. race — the arms race
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. degree — from a university
  22. bound — tied together
  23. degree — temperature
  24. wax — in the ear

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