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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 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.

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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: bear · shower · bulb · jam · rest · cold · wake · bat

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. wake — a trail
  7. cold — not warm
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bulb — for light
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bear — the animal
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. rest — what's left
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — rain
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. rest — a break

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