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: season · stock · cap · spell · last · deal · bound · clip

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. clip — to cut
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. clip — for paper
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a lid
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — in sport
  9. cap — a hat
  10. last — final
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. clip — a video
  14. last — to go on
  15. deal — to handle
  16. bound — tied together
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stock — shares
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. spell — magic
  21. last — finally
  22. bound — certain
  23. stock — goods
  24. bound — obliged

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