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 · wax · bat · pit · stock · rock · race · fan

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. rock — music
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. race — humankind
  5. clip — to cut
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. wax — to grow
  8. clip — a video
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pit — a hole
  13. bat — the animal
  14. pit — in a race
  15. race — a contest
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. stock — goods
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. race — the arms race
  24. clip — for paper

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