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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. swing — music
  3. perch — the fish
  4. spring — of water
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. swing — to play on
  7. shower — rain
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. row — to paddle
  10. present — there
  11. shower — to wash
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. chip — to eat
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. present — a gift
  16. row — a line
  17. spring — the season
  18. present — the time now
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. date — the fruit
  21. spring — a coil
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. swing — in golf
  24. chip — for betting

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