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: board · firm · cold · bound · stem · chest · prune · chair

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — an illness
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bound — tied together
  6. firm — steady
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. bound — certain
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. chest — a box
  11. board — to get on
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. firm — decided
  15. board — a committee
  16. firm — a company
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. bound — obliged
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. prune — to trim

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