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: pound · pitch · nail · row · wind · face · perch · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. wind — moving air
  3. season — in sport
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. row — a line
  8. wind — moving air
  9. face — to confront
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. face — to point toward
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. season — of the year
  16. pound — a weight
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. face — part of the head
  19. pitch — completely
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. pound — for dogs

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