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: wound · net · mine · face · press · rest · wax · pound

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. face — to point toward
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. rest — a break
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wax — to grow
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wound — an injury
  11. net — for catching
  12. face — to confront
  13. net — after costs
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. press — a publisher
  17. wound — an injury
  18. press — newspapers
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pound — a weight
  24. net — 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