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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bound — certain
  4. season — in sport
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. rock — a stone
  7. clip — a video
  8. ground — crushed
  9. shower — rain
  10. tear — from crying
  11. clip — for paper
  12. rock — music
  13. root — of a word
  14. ground — a position
  15. clip — to cut
  16. tear — to rip
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — of the year
  19. tear — from crying
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — to wash
  22. ground — the earth
  23. root — the cause
  24. root — of a plant

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