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 116 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: spell · season · hand · rest · cell · wind · ground · chair

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — a phone
  3. season — of the year
  4. spell — letters
  5. hand — help
  6. spell — magic
  7. hand — in cards
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cell — in biology
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — a position
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — in sport
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. ground — crushed
  23. spell — a short time
  24. rest — a break

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