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: cold · rest · ball · plane · board · firm · straw · capital

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. cold — not warm
  4. board — a committee
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. firm — steady
  7. ball — a great time
  8. firm — decided
  9. capital — a city
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. board — to get on
  14. rest — what's left
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. rest — a break
  19. firm — a company
  20. plane — a tool
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. capital — money
  24. plane — an aircraft

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