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 120 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: rock · kick · plane · straw · bowl · cold · land · stick

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  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. plane — a tool
  2. rock — music
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — in football
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. rock — a stone
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. land — ground
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  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