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: toast · kid · capital · patient · wax · straw · bark · object

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — a city
  6. object — an aim
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. toast — bread
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. bark — to shout
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. object — to protest
  14. wax — to grow
  15. object — a thing
  16. kid — child
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. capital — money
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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