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: degree · fan · last · land · bat · wax · object · rush

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. object — an aim
  3. object — a thing
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. degree — from a university
  10. land — to come down
  11. last — final
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. land — ground
  19. land — a country
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. object — to protest
  22. bat — the animal
  23. wax — to grow
  24. degree — temperature

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