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: bore · fan · tear · dip · game · spell · rash · court

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. court — for sport
  7. game — wild animals
  8. tear — to rip
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. game — a match
  15. court — of law
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. court — of a king
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. spell — a short time
  20. rash — a series
  21. spell — letters
  22. bore — to tire
  23. dip — to sink
  24. spell — magic

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