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 120 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 · mark · tear · wax · bat · court · craft · dip

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. court — of a king
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. court — for sport
  5. dip — to sink
  6. wax — to grow
  7. tear — to rip
  8. mark — a trace
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. craft — boats
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a grade
  13. bore — to tire
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. court — of law
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bore — to drill
  23. craft — a skill
  24. bore — gave birth

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