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: chair · march · pound · row · drill · cell · wax · lie

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. drill — a practice
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — the tool
  7. march — the month
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — a line
  10. chair — a leader
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cell — a phone
  13. march — music
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. march — the month
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. lie — to recline
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. pound — a weight
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. row — to paddle
  24. wax — in the ear

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