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: ground · scale · wax · fan · key · straw · clip · file

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. file — a line of people
  6. scale — in music
  7. key — for a lock
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a tool
  11. scale — size or range
  12. ground — a position
  13. key — the most important part
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. clip — for paper
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wax — to grow
  24. key — in music

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