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: mug · wax · cold · date · bass · calf · patient · cell

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bass — the fish
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. mug — to rob
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bass — low music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. mug — a face
  10. date — the fruit
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. wax — to grow
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cell — in biology
  21. mug — a cup
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. cold — not warm
  24. date — on the calendar

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