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 116 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: field · scale · pound · wax · wind · ball · perch · staff

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. scale — size or range
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. ball — a great time
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. perch — the fish
  7. field — a subject
  8. staff — employees
  9. field — farmland
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. field — for sport
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. wax — to grow
  15. wind — moving air
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wind — moving air
  19. scale — in music
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. staff — a stick
  23. pound — a weight
  24. staff — employees

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