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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · suit · kick · clip · capital · wind

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. clip — to cut
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kick — in football
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. suit — to fit
  9. clip — a video
  10. suit — in cards
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. suit — clothes
  17. clip — for paper
  18. kick — with a leg

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