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: clip · kick · firm · prune · foot · wax · branch · bat

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bat — the animal
  3. firm — steady
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. foot — a measure
  8. clip — for paper
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. firm — a company
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. prune — to trim
  14. branch — a division
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. firm — decided
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kick — in football
  24. prune — the fruit

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