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: straw · stock · field · coach · row · bass · wax · drill

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bass — the fish
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. bass — low music
  5. drill — a practice
  6. row — a line
  7. stock — shares
  8. field — for sport
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. drill — the tool
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. drill — army training
  13. field — a subject
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. row — to paddle
  18. field — farmland
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. stock — goods
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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