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: perch · bore · row · bat · spring · shower · fine · stock

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. row — a line
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. stock — shares
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bat — the animal
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fine — all right
  9. spring — the season
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. row — to paddle
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. fine — high quality
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — to tire
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. stock — goods
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. perch — the fish

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