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: game · shower · current · ground · wound · march · craft · fan

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. shower — rain
  3. march — music
  4. craft — a skill
  5. ground — the earth
  6. march — the month
  7. game — a match
  8. wound — an injury
  9. march — the month
  10. current — of water
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. current — electric
  13. shower — to wash
  14. craft — boats
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. game — wild animals
  19. ground — a position
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. current — happening now
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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