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 120 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: kid · rest · leaves · clip · patient · snap · bulb · wax

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. clip — to cut
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. snap — to click
  6. bulb — for light
  7. rest — a break
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. clip — a video
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. kid — child
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bulb — for light
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. rest — what's left
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. rest — what's left
  24. wax — to grow

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