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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wax — to grow
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — in a race
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. scale — size or range
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. kid — child
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mug — to rob
  21. pop — to visit
  22. scale — in music
  23. mug — a face
  24. wind — moving air

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