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: tear · band · ground · wax · patient · staff · kid · file

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. kid — to tease
  3. file — a document
  4. ground — crushed
  5. staff — employees
  6. file — a tool
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. file — a line of people
  9. band — a ring
  10. kid — child
  11. staff — a stick
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ground — the earth
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. wax — to grow
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. staff — employees
  19. tear — from crying
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. ground — a position
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a rubber band

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