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: racket · game · degree · bank · mine · wound · wax · stem

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bank — for money
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wound — an injury
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. mine — for digging
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wound — an injury
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bank — for money
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. game — a match
  20. degree — an amount
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — to grow

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