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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mug — a cup
  3. mug — a face
  4. content — happy
  5. file — a tool
  6. season — in sport
  7. mug — to rob
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. season — of the year
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — to grow
  13. mate — a partner
  14. file — a line of people
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. content — the amount
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. file — a document
  22. mate — to breed
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. content — videos and posts

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