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: wax · cold · nail · pitcher · toast · net · march · stem

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. march — the month
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wax — to grow
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. march — the month
  17. cold — an illness
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — after costs
  22. march — music
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. toast — bread

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