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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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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: degree · pound · wax · file · bore · hide · ruler · tear

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bore — to drill
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. pound — a weight
  5. degree — temperature
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. tear — to rip
  9. degree — from a university
  10. file — a line of people
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a document
  21. wax — to grow
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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