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: bound · cell · ground · land · jam · season · tear · staff

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. tear — from crying
  4. season — of the year
  5. tear — from crying
  6. staff — a stick
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bound — tied together
  9. land — to come down
  10. ground — a position
  11. land — ground
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. bound — obliged
  15. land — a country
  16. ground — the earth
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology
  19. season — in sport
  20. staff — employees
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. staff — employees
  23. ground — crushed
  24. jam — in traffic

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