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: wax · bass · chest · face · spring · squash · season · stick

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. face — to point toward
  5. season — of the year
  6. spring — of water
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. face — to confront
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. spring — the season
  12. bass — the fish
  13. wax — to grow
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bass — low music
  16. season — in sport
  17. squash — the sport
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chest — of your body
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spring — a coil
  24. chest — a box

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