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: bay · saw · prune · plane · mine · wax · cold · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. key — for a lock
  4. plane — a tool
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. wax — to grow
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. cold — not warm
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. saw — the tool
  13. cold — an illness
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. key — in music
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mine — for digging
  24. prune — the fruit

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