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: lie · chair · pit · march · staff · field · content · wax

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. field — farmland
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. lie — to recline
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. march — the month
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. content — the amount
  9. wax — to grow
  10. pit — a hole
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. staff — employees
  13. march — the month
  14. chair — a leader
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. staff — a stick
  18. field — a subject
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. field — for sport
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pit — in a race
  23. march — music
  24. content — happy

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