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 116 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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a document
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. degree — an amount
  6. sharp — clever
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wax — to grow
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. degree — temperature
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. march — the month
  14. stem — to come from
  15. degree — from a university
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. file — a tool
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. march — the month
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. march — music

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