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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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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: ruler · pound · wax · ground · degree · chest

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. ground — a position
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. pound — a weight
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ground — the earth
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ground — crushed
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. degree — temperature
  17. wax — to grow
  18. chest — of your body

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