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

Word bank: shower · can · race · chest · pitch · present · wax · pop

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. shower — to wash
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. can — to be able to
  7. pitch — completely
  8. present — there
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pop — soda
  12. can — a tin
  13. shower — rain
  14. race — a contest
  15. present — a gift
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — the arms race
  18. chest — a box
  19. pop — to visit
  20. wax — to grow
  21. pop — music
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. can — a tin
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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