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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fall — to drop
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. perch — the fish
  13. mine — for digging
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. row — to paddle
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — in cards
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pound — a weight
  22. rush — hurry
  23. shower — to wash
  24. row — a line

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