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: pop · court · stem · date · chair · net · bound · nail

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. net — after costs
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pop — music
  6. bound — certain
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bound — obliged
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. net — in sport
  12. pop — soda
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. court — for sport
  15. date — the fruit
  16. court — of law
  17. bound — tied together
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. pop — to visit
  21. court — of a king
  22. net — for catching
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. chair — a leader

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