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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.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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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: bulb · degree · fan · wave · bear · cue · cold · nail

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. cue — for pool
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. degree — an amount
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bear — the animal
  12. cue — a signal
  13. bulb — for light
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. degree — temperature
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — not warm

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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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