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: cold · rush · leaves · lash · cell · pit · straw · wax

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. wax — to grow
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cold — not warm
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cell — in biology
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. cold — an illness

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