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: row · net · court · snap · field · pitch · chip · shower

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. snap — to click
  3. chip — to eat
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. court — for sport
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. field — a subject
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. shower — rain
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. net — for catching
  14. row — to paddle
  15. court — of a king
  16. net — after costs
  17. field — for sport
  18. net — in sport
  19. chip — for betting
  20. row — a line
  21. field — farmland
  22. court — of law
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. shower — to wash

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