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: stock · chest · bound · bass · wax · jam · cold · stem

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. stock — goods
  6. bass — low music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chest — a box
  9. bass — the fish
  10. stem — to come from
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stock — shares
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bound — certain
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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