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: bass · drill · straw · bank · roll · chair · stick · cold

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. cold — not warm
  3. drill — the tool
  4. roll — a cake
  5. bass — the fish
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. cold — an illness
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. bank — of a river
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bank — for money
  14. drill — army training
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. bank — for money
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. drill — a practice
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. roll — a list
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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