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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mine · cue · race · mark · track · land · date · degree

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mark — a trace
  3. track — to keep track
  4. cue — a hint
  5. race — humankind
  6. race — the arms race
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. track — a path
  13. mine — for digging
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. track — a song
  17. land — a country
  18. land — ground
  19. mark — a grade
  20. date — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. land — to come down
  23. race — a contest
  24. degree — from a university

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