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: bound · stock · snap · hand · wax · face · cold · spring

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. stock — goods
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. cold — not warm
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. bound — tied together
  7. spring — the season
  8. wax — to grow
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. hand — in cards
  11. snap — to click
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. spring — a coil
  14. face — to point toward
  15. hand — help
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. cold — an illness
  18. spring — of water
  19. stock — shares
  20. bound — obliged
  21. face — to confront
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bound — certain
  24. face — part of the head

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