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: wind · pitcher · drill · field · hand · stem · wax · march

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. drill — the tool
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. stem — to come from
  5. march — the month
  6. field — a subject
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. field — farmland
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. hand — help
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. march — music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. field — for sport
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. wax — to grow
  20. drill — a practice
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. drill — army training
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. march — the month

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