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: staff · wax · mine · pitch · cell · drill · swing · chair

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. staff — employees
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. staff — a stick
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. swing — in golf
  8. pitch — completely
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. drill — army training
  11. swing — music
  12. mine — for digging
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. swing — to play on
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cell — a phone
  20. drill — the tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. cell — in biology
  23. chair — a leader
  24. pitch — a sports field

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