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 · vault · bound · branch · degree · jam · plane · cold

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bound — obliged
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. degree — temperature
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bound — tied together
  7. plane — a tool
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. bound — certain
  10. degree — from a university
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. cold — an illness
  13. season — in sport
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. cold — not warm
  20. branch — a division
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. season — of the year

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