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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rest — a break
  3. land — a country
  4. stock — goods
  5. last — to go on
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. stock — shares
  8. land — ground
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. cue — for pool
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cue — a hint
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. last — finally
  20. land — to come down
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. deal — to handle
  23. wax — to grow
  24. cue — a signal

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