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

Word bank: rest · fan · net · snap · wax · court

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. court — of law
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. rest — what's left
  8. snap — to click
  9. rest — a break
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — in sport
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. court — for sport
  14. court — of a king
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wax — to grow
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. net — after costs

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