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 120 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: rock · bat · kick · tear · capital · content · face · wax

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. content — the amount
  7. face — part of the head
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. rock — a stone
  11. capital — a city
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. face — to confront
  15. rock — music
  16. kick — in football
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. wax — to grow
  19. face — to point toward
  20. capital — money
  21. content — happy
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bat — the animal

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