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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rest — a break
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. rest — what's left
  7. clip — a video
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tear — from crying
  12. court — for sport
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. foot — a measure
  15. court — of a king
  16. clip — for paper
  17. court — of law
  18. tube — a container
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. tear — to rip
  23. rest — what's left
  24. foot — part of the body

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