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 · patient · wax · shower · hand · spell · club · game

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. hand — help
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cap — a hat
  6. shower — to wash
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. club — a group
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. spell — a short time
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. game — a match
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. game — wild animals
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spell — magic
  18. club — for golf
  19. shower — rain
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. club — for dancing
  22. cap — of ice
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. spell — letters

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