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: season · trunk · mug · wax · spring · temple · fan · hand

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. spring — a coil
  6. season — of the year
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. mug — to rob
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wax — to grow
  14. hand — in cards
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. spring — the season
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. spring — of water
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. hand — help
  21. mug — a face
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. season — in sport

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