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: cap · bat · wax · straw · key · clip · mug · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. mug — a cup
  3. clip — for paper
  4. kick — in football
  5. cap — a hat
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. mug — to rob
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wax — to grow
  15. mug — a face
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — the animal
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. key — in music
  20. clip — to cut
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — of ice
  23. clip — a video
  24. straw — a straw man

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