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: plane · game · dip · wax · pitch · pound · fall · bat

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — a match
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. plane — a tool
  7. bat — the animal
  8. wax — to grow
  9. fall — to drop
  10. dip — to sink
  11. pitch — completely
  12. fall — the season
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. game — wild animals
  15. pound — a weight
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. fall — to drop
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. dip — a sauce

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