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: bound · roll · wax · key · foot · cold · nail · squash

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. foot — a measure
  3. squash — the sport
  4. roll — a cake
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. key — the most important part
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. key — in music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bound — tied together
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. cold — not warm
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bound — obliged
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a list
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bound — certain
  22. squash — to crush
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. wax — to grow

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