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 120 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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. band — a ring
  5. shower — rain
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. swing — to play on
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. craft — boats
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. craft — a skill
  15. swing — music
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. band — a music group
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. shower — to wash
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. chair — a leader
  24. swing — in golf

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