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 · spring · mine · track · row · capital · arm · fork

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. track — a song
  3. row — a line
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wax — to grow
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. capital — a city
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. spring — of water
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. spring — the season
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. track — a path
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. mine — for digging
  18. row — to paddle
  19. track — to keep track
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. fork — in a road
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. arm — part of the body

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