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: capital · clip · firm · band · wax · pass · stem · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  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. mine — for digging
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. firm — decided
  7. wax — to grow
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. band — a music group
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. firm — a company
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. stem — to come from
  15. clip — a video
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. pass — a permit
  21. band — a ring
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. firm — steady
  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