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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: tear · bore · current · shower · root · wax · last · degree

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. tear — from crying
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. last — final
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. degree — an amount
  12. tear — from crying
  13. current — electric
  14. root — of a word
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wax — to grow
  17. shower — to wash
  18. current — of water
  19. degree — temperature
  20. current — happening now
  21. shower — rain
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. root — the cause

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